Who Decides What is Right?
by Sasshaia
Summary: A fight with a strange kid with even stranger powers leaves the turtles shaken and questioning one another, but now they need to figure out who is an ally, and who is an enemy, and who is keeping too many secrets.
1. Prologue

**A/N** - This is the first installment of a many chaptered story I plan on writing. It's a cross over fic with the TMNT and a universe I created for a novel I'm trying to write (2 years on it now. PHEW!). This story takes place a little while after the lost season of the 2K3 TV show with the Ninja Tribunal. I reference a few things from that, but it is not necessary to be familiar with that plot arc. All you need to know is that the four brothers were trained by four Ninja Masters to fight an evil they defeated in the show already. Anyway, have fun with this. And please review.

**DISCLAIMER:** TMNT ain't mine. Stop asking. A couple characters are mine though.

* * *

**Prelude**

_**Leonoardo**_

_I watched as his hand stayed perfectly still and my brother was the one to fall away. Raphael's face was one of shock, horror, and, the one emotion I had never seen on my brother's face and the one emotion that burned away at me the second I saw it, complete and utter submission. _

_My fury rose in an instant. How had this one person been able to bring my fearless brother to his knees? It seemed impossible. All the kid had done was reach out and place his palm on my brother's head. The next thing I know, Raph is now chocking as he struggles to breathe as if he forgot how, sweat soaking his entire body and his arms hanging limply at his sides. _

_Raphael never admits defeat. He could have all his limbs hacked off, both eyes gauged out, surrounded by twenty Foot soldiers, and he still would not admit defeat, but now my brother refused to fight any more. He was broken. He even screamed while the guy had his hand on his head._

_I had no idea what this guy did, but it had to be sadistic if it could get Raph to tremble. I still can't get the concept out of my head. Raphael, the person who was probably brave beyond intelligent thought was now trembling at this guy's feet._

"_I hope that taught you something," the boy says, and I turn my gaze back to him. That boy, he looked younger than us, was smirking. He enjoyed Raph's pain, I realize. How _dare_ he? How dare he assault my family like this? I would not stand by and let this _kid_ get away with it._

_He turns to leave, aiming for the fire escape, the same one he used to get up here like he somehow knew we were here on the roof. "Don't you walk away from me," I scream, and I prepare to jump him, arcing my katanas over my head to slice him into three parts._

_But I am stopped as a hand lashes out and seizes my wrist. It happened so fast that I never even saw, nor did I even expect it, especially from him. I look over. I have to glance down to see his face, the submission I had seen initially even more evident on Raph's features._

_I can only stare at him, dumbfounded at what he is doing. I want to scream at him. I want to hit him since he stopped my attack. But all I can do is stare at his placid face. And then he says the one word that hits me harder than any bat waving Purple Dragon or katana wielding Foot Ninja. "Don't," he says._

**_Michelangelo_**

_I told them we shouldn't have messed with this kid. He gave me the creeps the second I saw what he did on that sidewalk, and then he vaults up the fire escape like he had been doing it for years, almost like he was one of us. _

_I have to admit, the way it looked, he seemed pretty twisted, but to do be honest, there really was not much to look at. One second he was standing there confronting the guy and his girlfriend. The next thing I know, the guy's twitching on the ground in front of him and the girl has run off screaming, and all the kid did was pat the guy on the head._

_Raph and Leo thought it looked worse than I did, and they wanted to confront the guy when he got up to the Roof. That had not ended well. The guy was smug and smirking a lot, and it made me shiver when he looked at me. _

_He must have said something that got to Raph, because he was soon after the guy, and then Leo was, berating Raph under his breath, and then I followed him knowing I had to back up my bros. _

_Donnie was the only one to hang back. He was too shocked from the kid's appearance to really do anything, and I don't blame him, but that does not mean I did not expect it from him. Don was never one to stand back looking completely baffled. He always had an answer, a reaction, an idea, anything, it did not matter. No matter the situation, you could always count on Donnie to pull something out of his sleeve, but not today._

_He watched as the three of us took on this one little kid who was barely taller than all of us. But he still watched as the kid evaded every single one of our attacks. And then, with one quick motion, I found myself on my back. I did not even know I had been hit. I heard Leo and Raph land next to me, their groans echoing in my ears._

_Now I'm just staring up at the sky as I lie on my back, my limbs refusing to move for me. I notice Donnie at the top of my vision, his eyes displaying a look of total horror. He doe not move. Finally, I can control my legs and I get up and move over to Donnie. I shake him vigorously, calling his name, but he does not respond. He just continues to stare, glassy eyed at the guy who beat us all so easily._

_Realizing my efforts are in vain, I watch with him as the guy pats Raph, and now Raph is on the ground, defeated. This guy was insane. I start wondering to myself what Donnie was thinking just then. I think he realized right away what this kid is. He realizes that this kid is strong, and that if he wanted to, he could easily get rid of all of us._

_And now, I am starting to think that too._

**_Raphael_**

_Yeah, the kid pissed me off at first, but then again most thugs piss me off the second I see them doin' crap like pickin' on defenseless people. Well, I guess the guy was not really defenseless. He looked like he worked out, and he had somebody with him. His girlfriend no doubt, couldn't get a good look at her. And besides, it was only the one kid. But that one kid had brought down a six foot four body builder and sent a cutie runnin' and screamin'. I couldn't kelp it, my blood boiled right then and there. I'm always quick to temper like that, but really, I guess I'm kinda glad the kid taught me that lesson._

_He had beaten us. He beat us so easily and quickly that I barely noticed. First Mikey, then Leo, and then me. That probably just pissed me off even more. For me, it was too late to stop and think about things. This kid needed to go down right then and there. _

_I ignored Mikey's warnin' the first time I attacked. I called him a coward in my mind. Now, I'm not so sure. I had never doubted myself before. Scum on the streets was scum that needed to be dealt with, that was how it worked. That was how it always worked for me. This kid was no different. I told myself I could take him, so I did._

_I charged. Master Splinter always said that my brashness could wind up gettin' the others in trouble. I always figured that if they didn't want to get hurt, then they didn't have to follow me. I've changed my mind about that, now._

_I barely got two steps when the guy reached out with his left hand. So fast, I didn't even notice it, and I'm a ninja. It rested on my head and I stopped, confused for a second as to what the kid was doin', but then I feel it. A light tinglin' ran through my skull from where the kids palm was, and suddenly, everythin' changed. _

_I was in a bedroom. At least I think it was a bedroom. It was too dark, and the vision was blurry. I saw him. It was the body builder who the kid had taken down not a minute ago, except he was towerin' over me. The dude snickered and the vision shifted back and forth as if lookin for somethin'. I realized I couldn't control it so I just watched, and then it hit me. _

_My brothers know me as the brash and impulsive one, but I like to think myself the brave one. I've been scared on occasions. Occasions that I don't tell my brothers about, but rare occasions none-the-less. So I was more than surprised when I suddenly felt terrified. And then I realized how terrifyin' bein' terrified was, if that makes any sense. _

_I screamed, at least I thought I screamed, but the only sound I heard was the guy's snickerin' and this quiet whimperin' comin' from my point of view. It sounded feminine, but it was hard to tell in the haze. It sobbed a couple times, and then I wanted to sob. The guy bent over, an evil glint in his eyes as he looked me/her up and down. He stopped, starin' at the chest as he said, "Are we going to be good and have fun tonight?"_

_I feel my body tremble. I was sick to my stomach, as I watched what was about to happen. Part of me wants to beat the guy to a pulp, but now, this other part that feels the girl, it just wants to get it over with. I want it to be over with, so I give in. I still can't stand to think back to that._

_And then the kid comes back into my sight. My legs tremble and I am sweatin' profusely. I give in and sink to my knees as I realize what just happened. This kid is not the scumbag I thought he was. I was wrong about him. I was completely wrong. He was the one gettin' the scumbag._

_I want to apologize to him. I want to get off my knees right now and beg this kid for forgiveness, and I have never begged for anythin' in my life. A tear falls down my cheek as I struggle to work the right muscles so I can take in a much needed breath of air._

_I notice out of the corner of my eye Leo start to move. His katanas are raised. He's about to attack the kid. I can't let him do that. I can't let him see what I saw._

_I weakly reach out and grab his wrist. He turns to me and I look at him. I struggle to say somethin', anythin'. I want to warn him, but nothin' comes out, just silence. Finally, I blurt on one word, but thankfully, it's enough. "Don't."_

_**Donatello**_

_Looking back, I must have acted completely out of character. I simply froze. I froze the second I saw him. That boy in the long black trench coat and that strange bandana of green flame came up to us. I wondered if he had already noticed us by the time he started ascending those ladders. I actually kind of doubt it. He would not approach my brothers and me so freely, like he did, if he knew we were all there._

_I do not think he wanted trouble. He was probably just trying to get away from the scene by the time the cops showed up to pick up the muscle guy sucking his thumb on the street corner down there. I do not think he wanted any more trouble, but that did not stop Leo and Raph from confronting him._

_When they attacked, I was scared. I did not know how I should react. I was not sure if I should fight with them or not. Even so, I knew they stood no chance of defeating him. I had seen the boy fight so many times before, and I knew that even the four masters of the Ninja Tribunal would have a hard time taking him down. I could only watch as the attacks were dodged and soon countered. A couple quick hip throws and my brothers were lying on their backs. _Good,_ I thought,_ he went easy on them.

_I still could not move though. I needed to stop my brothers from fighting anymore, but I could not think of something to say that would stop them, nothing that would make sense to them or would not give any thing away at least. I was stuck in that confrontation without an answer._

_What scared me the most was the boy's smile. He had always had a smile on his face when I had seen him before, always jovial and friendly and understanding. But this smile hid triumphant confidence to almost a sadistic nature. It was the kind of smirk I had seen all too often on Oroku Saki's fake humanoid face covering his robotic body suit. It was this smile that kept me frozen in place wondering what to do._

_I see it. Raphael, my obnoxiously brash brother jumps at the kid. I fear for my brother, hoping that the boy will not hurt him much, but my heart almost stops when the boy grabs his head. I hope that the boy will go easy on him, because I know what he could be showing him, and it is most likely not pretty._

_It seems to have the desired effect, as I watch my brother slump. Anyone would slump after watching that. This boy was a master of dominating people, and I am just letting him deal with my brothers like little play things. I hate myself right now for letting this go on. I could have stopped this the second the boy jumped up here, but now, I do not know what to do._

_Leo has hatred in his eyes, and he wants to avenge Raph, but Raph reaches out and stops him. I wish I could say I was stunned, but even my frenzied brother always looking for a fight can not stand up against this kid. _At least someone made everyone stop,_ I think to myself._

_As the boy turns to leave, I catch his eye and in the briefest of moments, I see it. He winks at me. I do not know if my brother's notice this or not, but I hope they do not. He turns to leave and I am left there to ponder this. That one little wink tells me more than anything. _

_It was an act._

_That dominating nature and challenging posture that he carried throughout our encounter was an act. He recognized me the second he saw me and knew I had not revealed anything to my brothers, so he did not reveal anything to them either. But now I am wondering if that was the right thing to do. Maybe I should have said something the second we saw him on the street. Now there was bad blood between him and my brothers. Now I do not think they would accept him as being my second sensei._


	2. Chapter 1 The Meeting

**A/N - **Quick note about this chapter, it is really just the detailed version of what the guys were talking about in the prologue and the events leading up to it. Hopefully you get a good picture of the kid, my OC, in this chapter. Please critique him knowing that many things about him are as of yet unrevealed and will probably stay that way until, (counts on fingers) chapter 7 or 8, probably 8.

A note about the story as a whole, and I really hate saying this, but please do not expect such quick updates like this. I have other projects that I really need to focus more attention on at the moment, and I'm on Spring Break right now, so that's why I have the time to work on this. If I get more reviews on this, I will hasten my writing, but I can make no guarantees. Please don't hate me, and thanks for reading. If you are interested in my work, I will probably be writing more one-shots when I come up with them. I only have the one Angsty one right now called Fixing It, but that should change. And if you haven't read Fixing It, please do unless you have an aversion to Angst stories. It was my first fic, and it seems that several people like it, so that makes me happy.

Sorry for the long rant. Back to the story. Enjoy!

**Diaclaimer:** Still not mine. Still belongs to Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, Mirage Studios and 4kids.

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**CHAPTER 1 - The Meeting**

Mike meditated, focusing all his attention on the stone in front of him. He analyzed its round texture and the sparkling it made from the broken side as it reflected the light off the half moon in the sky. He watched as an ant crawled over to the stone and stopped, staring at the looming object in front of it, confused as to how to get passed.

There were few things in life that got Michelangelo to stay so still and quiet. Even when they were battling the Shredder and the Foot Clan, or Bishop and his Commandos, or Hun and the Purple Dragons, one of his brothers almost always ended up gagging him, trying to keep him quiet. He always enjoyed spouting off the little taunting jokes that came to his mind, and he new it worked well to distract his opponents while he kept a level head. He knew because it always worked on his brother Raph.

But this was not like when they were fighting. This was a matter of honor, of life and death. This was the game of Hide and Seek with three ninja brothers. And not just any Hide and Seek game, but one where you had three whole city blocks of roofs to hide in.

And, oh yes, Donatello was it.

Mike sucked in what he hoped was a quiet breath, but it sounded like thunder to him. Whenever Donatello was it when they played Hide and Seek he always brought out some new gadget he would use to find his brothers with. The first time they played, Donnie used one of those night vision goggles he had built to see better in the dark. That was the first rule they had to amend to Hide and Seek: No Night Vision Goggles.

Of course that did not stop the purple-clad turtle. He just considered that to be a challenge to find other things he could locate his brothers with, and Mike had to admit, he was certainly creative when it came to the things he came up with. Now their amended rules included: No Thermal Goggles, No Sonar Devices, No Planting Turtle Trackers, No Tracking Trough the Shell Cells, the list went on. Mike had actually forgotten most of them, but thankfully, they kept a list back at the lair, and Leo was usually pretty good at remembering all of them. All sixteen of them.

Mike jumped as he heard a small beeping coming from his belt. He reached down and pulled his Shell Cell out of his pouch and stared at it horrified. A small red light was blinking at him as it let out an obnoxious beep that seemed to echo over the roof tops. Mike panicked and flung the thing into an alley. _Donnie's gonna kill me,_ he thought to himself as he pressed himself up against the wall as tightly as he could.

After a few minutes of breath holding, Mike started to hear voices. "Geez, Donnie, that was low." It was Raph.

"But not against the rules," came Donnie's reply.

"You know, this is getting really old Don," Leo said. "Could you at least pretend to play like any normal person?"

"But that's not fun," Don insisted. "You guys barely pay attention to me as it is when I start talking about the technical variances of a device I give you. I'm just trying to show you that if you paid a little closer attention, you might learn something."

"Settin' off the emergency beacons ya installed on the Shell Cells is not real '_technical,_' bro," Raph countered. "Heck, I could 'a figured that one out."

"But you didn't, did you, Raph," Don responded. There was a slight growling coming from Raph, and then Don continued. "I don't know Raph. I'm not sure you would have been able to think up the idea of circumnavigating your Shell Cell in an attempt to locate the external depression device that would trigger the electrical signal to be sent to all the others so that the circuit switch would connect the impulse to set off the 40 decibel alarm."

There was silence for a moment, and then Raph said, "…say what?"

A slight snickering came from Don, and mike heard Leo audibly sigh. Raph growled again. "Ya know, sometimes, I think ya do that just ta make me look stupid or somethin'," he snapped.

"Now why would I do that, Raph?" Donnie said. If Mike had not been so desperate to keep quiet, he would have snickered as well. Sometime, somehow, just as Mike had hoped, he had rubbed off a little on his brother. Although that did not change the fact that he also had no idea what Don had been talking about.

"So where's Mikey," Leo asked.

There was a moment of silence before Don said, "I don't know. I went over this whole block and didn't hear his shell cell go off."

"Ya think he was captured by someone?" Raph asked. Mike grinned to himself. His silence was paying off. He won this round.

He made to get up, but stopped short when Don started speaking again. "I should hope so. It would be a relief. Do you know how many of my experiments he has been playing with lately?" Mike froze. What did his brother mean by that?

"No kiddin'," Raph steps in. "And he never turns down the TV or stereo. I mean, I'm right next door, tryin' ta get some shut eye, an' he just keeps turnin' the damn volume up."

"And he leaves his stuff everywhere," Leo interjected. _No,_ Mike thought, _Not Leo, too._ "I almost killed myself when I tripped over his skateboard. He left it right outside my room, and I fell on my shell down to the lower level of the lair. My back still hurts from that fall."

"And this all happened today, didn't it?" Donnie asked. Mike heard Raph make a grunting noise that sounded like a confirmation, and he suspected that Leo nodded when he heard Don sigh loudly.

"Oh well. If he was captured then there's nothing we can do about," Leo said. "Let's go home. Now who's going to tell Master Splinter we lost Michelangelo tonight."

"I will," Raph said. "I've been wantin' ta give him some good news for awhile now."

Mikey couldn't stand it anymore. He jumped out from behind the air vent he was hiding behind and confronted his brothers. "You guys are all jerks. I wish I really was…cap…tured…" He stopped rambling when he saw his brothers all standing there, arms crossed over their chests, staring at him with bright smiles on their faces. He sat down on the ground shocked and confused, and soon embarrassed as realization dawned on him.

He'd been had.

* * *

Donatello flinched slightly when he saw the look of hurt on his younger brother's face. He almost felt sorry for the cruel trick they played on him, but then he remembered seeing that little metallic disk of a shell cell go flying into the chasm of a New York City alleyway, and then he did not feel so bad. 

Raph seemed to think it funny at least, because he could not seem to stop laughing. "Oh man, Mikey," He gasped out. "You should see the look on yer face right now, bro. You'd think ya actually believed us."

Mikey sniffed back a sob and Leo sighed again. "Mikey, it was joke, you know that, right?" When Mikey just glared at him, Leo flinched and looked over to Don. "Besides, it was Donnie's idea," he said.

Mike shifted his tear filled glare to Donatello. Don looked at him with his own stare. "That's your payback for ditching the shell cell into the alley."

"That doesn't make us even," Mikey growled. Don narrowed his eyes. "Alright, fine, we're even."

"Good," Don replied as he reached into his belt and retrieved another shell cell. He threw the spare over to his brother who caught it neatly in one hand, giving it a dumb look. "I figured you would do something to your phone the second I set off the alarm, so I brought a spare."

"So explain ta me how what you did is not the same as trackin' us with the shell cells, Donnie?" Raph asked.

Don smirked. "Because I was just listening for a beeping coming from your shell cells instead of locating you via following an electronic pulse emanating from a servo in side it." When they all stared at him, Don simplified, "electric pulse, different from sound wave."

The other three turtles just sighed and shrugged. They knew better than to argue with him about technicalities. "So, No setting off the emergency signal on the shell cells amended to the rules," Leo said and looked at everyone else. "Are we all clear on that?" They all nodded.

Then some voices on the street caught their attention. It was well into the night, so any voices usually signaled the coming of some street punks. They all moved over to the edge of the roof to get a better look, and what they saw interested Mike, Raph and Leo, but Don's breath caught in his throat. There on the street corner was the familiar boy he had known for almost ten years now. There was no way he could forget that outfit. The kid wore a dark trench coat that swayed in the breeze below his knees. His hands were buried deep within his pockets. He wore a dark blue t-shirt on under the coat, black jeans and old, worn out tennis shoes. His skin was rather pale, but not overly so, and most of his dark brown hair was covered under a bandana of varying shades of green in a strange flame motif. On the center of his forehead was a full moon. At least it was thought to be a full moon considering half of it was hidden behind the fold in the cloth.

The boy was standing in front of a six foot four blond man whose muscles bulged and almost ripped open his obviously too small T-shirt, probably worn to impress the girl that was clinging to one of his arms. Don found his voice then. "Hey guys, maybe we should go. Master Splinter is probably worried about us."

"Are you kiddin'," Raph said, glaring at Don. "The blond dude looks like he's 'bout ta kick that kids ass, and there ain't no way I'm gonna let that happen." Raph fingered the hilts of his sais in anticipation.

"I don't know guys," Mikey piped up. "That kid might be trying somethin'. I mean, look at that smirk he has. And big black trench coat is definitely a sign too."

Leo crossed his arms over his plastron. "Mikey, just because someone wears black doesn't make them a bad guy," he said more than a little annoyed with his brothers bout of wisdom.

Just then, a scream made them all look back down to the street corner. The girl was running off, and the guy was twitching with the kid's hand on his brow. They all watched, dumbfounded as the body builder fell to the ground twitching with his thumb in his mouth. "See," Mikey said, but everyone ignored him.

The second the body builder fell, the boy pulled out a cell phone. After a quick chat, he closed the phone and ran into the alleyway. "Dude, did he just call 911?" Mikey asked, and the others just nodded.

A deep and feral growl emanated from deep within Raphael's chest. "Alright. Don' expect ta here this often, but I think I agree with Mikey. That kid is sick."

"But, what did he do?" Leo asked.

"I don' care what that was, but it wasn't good, I can tell ya that," Raph countered.

Don was getting fearful of what his brother wanted to do. He had to get them home before they went running after that boy. "Guys, the kid didn't steal anything from them. And he did just call the authorities, so there are going to be cops around here soon. Maybe we should forget about him for now and get going."

Don's words fell on deaf ears as Raph just got himself more and more psyched up for a rumble. At least Leo seemed to hear some of it. "Easy Raph, if that kid could take down the muscle head, then we don't know what he's capable of," he said. Don sighed with relief. "We'll tail him for a short while." Don's hopes shattered at that. "Maybe we can find out more about him, see if he's in league with anybody else."

"Fine, whatevah Leo," Raph said as he moved to the edge of the roof that bordered the alleyway that the kid disappeared into.

"Tailing me won't be necessary," came a voice from the alleyway. Raph jumped back, drawing his sais. A green bandana appeared in the middle of the fire escape ladder and the boys frame gradually climbed over the ledge. He brushed off some stray concrete dust that had collected on his coat and then righted himself facing them, a broad grin splayed across his features.

Apparently Raphael did not take the grin to well, because he almost attacked the kid right then and there if it had not been for Leo putting a restraining hand on his shoulder. Raphael calmed himself with a few deep breaths before Leo removed his hand and took a couple steps towards the boy. "So, who are you, and why did you come up here?" he asked.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," the kid said. "Isn't it proper to give your name before asking for someone else's?"

"Um, No," Mike said stepping in, although the quavering in his voice gave him away.

The kid reached up and scratched the back of his head looking slightly baffled. "Wow. I usually get you honorable types with that one. Oh, well. It's not like I needed you to tell me anyway. You're Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo and Donatello." He pointed to each one, naming them in quick succession. They all gaped, except for Donatello, but luckily, no one noticed.

But the boy continued right on going. "As for why I came up here. Well, I heard this go clattering down the alley a couple minutes ago." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a broken shell cell. Mikey went a paler shade of green. "And considering it looks like it's designed to collapse into the shape of a turtle shell, I'm guessing it belongs to one of you." The boy looked at each on of their stunned faces in turn. They each slowly looked towards Michelangelo, and he quickly seemed to shrink several inches.

Of course, this just made the boy laugh. "I wouldn't blame him if I were you," he said. "You know, just because you are several stories up, does not mean sound doesn't travel down." They all stared at him. "I could hear you talking about me."

"Enough of this," Raphael practically screamed. "Listen kid, I don't know what it is you did to that guy, but you happened to stumble across the guy whose job is to beat up punks who mess with other innocent people." He advanced on the kid twirling his sais between his massive fingers.

The boy seemed unperturbed. "If you don't know what I did, then how do you know what I did was wrong?" he asked, his mouth twitching into a sly smirk.

"No mind games kid, or I'm gonna make sure that smirk of yours is a permanent fixture on your face." And then Raph charged. Leo tried to stop him, but his brother was already too far ahead of him. Raph stabbed hard, but the sai only met with air.

"You should watch that temper of yours," a cheery voice behind him said. Raph spun to face that coy smile once again. "So fast," he whispered to himself. Without warning, the boy reached out and pinched Raph on the wrist. His hand went numb and he had to drop the sai. It clattered noisily on the brick roof. The boy swung out, connecting his other hand's palm with Raph's chest. Raphael went flying over to the edge of the roof, but thankfully landed next to the edge rather than over it.

"Help Raph," Leo commanded, but Donatello did not even notice the order. He stood there transfixed as he watched the kid take on his brothers with ease. Not a single blow landed. The boy did not even try to deflect, just dodged the attacks, even when Raphael regained his composure and rejoined the fray. Nothing worked against him, and Donatello already knew that.

Suddenly, after a blur of movement, Don saw his brothers lying on their backs in front of him. "Son of a bitch!" Raph swore as he got to his knees. Leo stood up immediately, but Don could tell by his stance that he was starting to get wary of the boy. Mikey remained on the ground, to stunned to move.

The sounds of approaching sirens broke through the silent night as the four brothers stared down the one boy who had brought them all down. Well, almost all of them. Raphael got to his feet and so did Michelangelo who ran over to Don, trying to shake him out of his trance, with little success. Moving red and blue lights soon accompanied the sirens as they stopped nearby, but this all went unnoticed by the five occupants of that roof.

"Well now, are you all ready to behave?" The boy's features changed. His eyes narrowed and his brow came down, but still, that smirk remained. It made him look more dangerous. Don sensed Mikey shivering, and he started thinking of doing that too. He had never seen the kid, his other sensei, look like this, so malevolent and bloodthirsty. "It is kind of rude to attack someone unprovoked like that, you know."

Raph was not ready to give up. "You're one to talk about unprovoked attacks. What did that blond dude do ta you that ya had ta make him suck his thumb."

The boy laughed. It was devilish and it scared Don, who was still so confused with the situation, and Raph was feeding off of every word and everything the boy said and did, using it as fuel for his rage and justification. "I just passed on a message to him," the boy said when he finally stopped laughing.

Raphael's eyes narrowed. "What kind of message?" he asked.

The boys grin grew. "I just showed him something I wanted him to take into consideration," he explained. "It really isn't that big of a deal."

"Not that big of a deal?" Raph quietly asked, his voice starting to tremble with rage. He glanced over his shoulder to take one last look at the body builder before they took him away on a stretcher. "Ya call that 'Not that big of a deal?'" he asked.

"Hey, I called an ambulance for him," the boy offered innocently as he shrugged, but his voice was tinged with a hint of malice.

That was the last straw for Raphael and he charged one more time screaming, "If it's 'No big deal,' then show me what made that guy a fuckin' vegetable." Raphael knew that a frontal assault was not going to work as well, so he made a stabbing feint just before flipping over the boys head. The boy made no reaction to the feint, and by the time Raphael swung his sai around to connect with the boy's throat, he was gone again.

"If you insist," the boy said from behind Raphael once more. Don opened his mouth to warn his brother. He wanted to scream at him to get away, but like lightning, the boys hand flew out and grabbed a firm hold on Raph's skull, and then Don knew he was too late.

* * *

Leo watched transfixed with horror as his hotheaded brother was seemingly tortured to his knees in a manner of seconds. The guttural scream was one thing, but to hear it come from Raph was what scared him the most. His nerves twitched on edge as he realized how scared he was. His gaze shifted, dropping to his panting brother and then back up to the kid whose hand was still outstretched and formed in a perfect cast of Raphael's skull. 

The boy pulled his hand back and stared at his palm. His eyes closed rather slowly and a soft chuckle escaped his throat. "I ended it before you saw the worst," he said, an almost somber note to his words. The somber tone in combination with the constant smile made Leo twitch as the blood began rushing through his veins, pumping the adrenaline that was leaking into his system to every muscle in his body. His ire continued to rise as the boy nonchalantly dropped his hand to his side and gave the broadest grin yet. "I'm sorry," he said with a new singsong voice. "I don't usually like to show those to people who aren't involved with the scenario, but he was very persuasive. I hope I didn't do any permanent damage, but it looks like he learned his lesson."

During that last part, his eyes fell to Raphael, who seemed to be starting to breathe easier now. That was the last straw in Leo's mind. How dare this kid? This kid had no right to think himself better then them. "How dare you touch my brother!?" He screamed. "Where do you get off trying to teach him a lesson? You're not our sensei."

The boy raised one eyebrow. "I never claimed I was," he said, unfazed by the outburst. He turned around. "I just showed him something. I think he decided on a lesson himself. But right now, I should get going. The authorities are gone, so now I can get back on the streets." And with that, he raised his hand in a dismissive wave goodbye as he ambled over to the fire escape.

Leo would not let him get there though. "Don't you walk away from me!" He yelled. He launched himself forward, the adrenaline doubling his speed and strength. He would be invincible in his attack. Nothing would stop him from taking down this kid and removing that confident smile from his face.

Nothing would stop him except for a limp hand that somehow found its way onto his wrist. "Don't." Raphael's voice sounded pained and hollow. It was devoid of any of its usual energetic confidence that came with his short fuse, and the high pitched shakiness was reminiscent of the tortured scream Leo had heard emanate from his brother only moments ago. Leo's eyes fell to his broken sibling. Raphael was staring transfixed at the feet of Donatello and Michelangelo, unwavering and unblinking. Two Riverbed stains fell down the sides of his face where the salty tears had mixed with his sweat.

Raphael's hand twitched slightly as his grip on Leo's wrist tightened. Leo had to bite back a slight yelp as his brother's strength crushed the nerves. His rush dying away, Leo was starting to feel the bruises the kid had inflicted, and his hand was quickly going numb as Raphael cut off the circulation to his fingers. "Raph, you're…," Leo kicked himself at what he was about to say. "That hurts bro."

The pressure on his wrist let up immediately. Leo rubbed his tingling hand as blood rushed to his slightly paler appendages. He glanced up and took a quick scan of the roof. The kid was gone, probably a block away by now.

He returned his gaze to his brother who was now staring at the hand that had held Leo's wrist. The fingers twitched and spasmed slightly as the muscles recuperated from being held taught in one position for so long. "I'm sorry, Leo," Raph said as he closed his eyes and sobbed quietly.

Leo slowly rested a comforting hand on Raphael's shoulder and felt his brother shivering underneath his touch. "Can you stand?" Leo asked in as soothing a voice as he could muster, and Raph's head fell in a slow nod. Leo helped his brother up, slinging Raph's arm over his shoulder to support his weight. He would pursue the kid some other time. Right now, he needed to get his brother home and safe, and maybe try to find out what the kid did to him.

"Mike, Don," Leo said. Michelangelo snapped to attention and Don's gaze shifted over to them from the fire escape. "Go get the battle shell and bring it into the alleyway. We're going to take Raph home." They both nodded and bounded off across the rooftops in the direction of where they had left the souped up moving van.

Leo gradually made his way over to and down the fire escape, helping Raphael the whole way. When they got to the base, they waited in silence until they heard the distant, but familiar hum of an approaching battle shell engine. Then Raphael spoke. "Don't go after him."

The sudden noise made Leonardo jump slightly. He had not really expected Raphael to start talking so soon, but he was happy to hear his voice. But that did not hide the concern and confusion he felt with his brother's statement. "Raph, I don't know what he did to you, but he can't go around doing it to other people," Leo explained. "We can't let him do that. And don't tell me you don't want to get even with him, because I know you do."

Raph shook his head. "I don't, Leo," he said. His eyes looked sad but a spark of life was starting to take flame and he smiled slightly. "He was right. He taught me somethin'."

Leo stared at his brother, dumbfounded. "What did he teach you?" Leo asked.

Raph looked away. "About myself. About crooks. About victims. He taught me a lot." His eyes focused on the bottom of a broken beer bottle lying in the middle of the alleyway. Bright red lights illuminating the two green faces went unnoticed as the battle shell backed into the alley, the back doors swinging open so the two turtles could get in.

"But most of all," Raphael continued quietly. He laughed again; this one actually seemed to hold a small bit of amusement in it. "I think he taught me something you and Master Splinter have been working on for years. To listen."


	3. Chapter 2 The Warning

**A/N - **Okay, so here is the official chapter 2. Hope you enjoy this one, and also hope this sheds some light as to what's going on in the turtles' heads.

**DISCLAIMER - **TMNT and Splinter belong to Peter Laird, Kevin Eastman, Mirage studios and 4Kids entertainment. Ninja Tribunal and the Ancient One belongs to 4Kids.

* * *

**CHAPTER 2 - The Warning**

Leo continued to insist that Raph lean on him, but once the battle shell was parked in their garage, Raph's pride got the better of him, and he made sure to walk on his own back to the lair. He could feel his legs quiver under his weight, as if they had never lifted him before. Every step he took left him with a feeling that his legs were going to collapse in agony, but he bit his tongue, forcing the feeling out of his mind. He had already lost enough face as it was, being brought to his knees earlier, and he needed to recover on his own. But that did not stop him from collapsing on the couch and closing his eyes the second he got to it.

"Raph, you okay?" Raph opened his eyes to look into the concerned face of his brother Leo.

Raph could only scowl as he rolled back over, hiding his face in the deep, ragged cushions. "Fine Leo," he said. He could not let his brother's see him like this. "I'm just tired is all."

"That just proves that you're not fine," Leo argued. "You're never this tired, especially after a trip topside."

Raph sat up and wheeled on his brother, glaring at him with every shred of his usual stubborn determination that he could muster but had escaped him not twenty minutes ago. "I said I'm fine," he screamed. He stood, his only source of strength his will to prove his endurance to his brother and keep him from asking the questions that were obviously swimming through his head.

Leo watched his brother, sensing Raph with more than his eyes, Raph knew, but he kept resolutely still, refusing to show any signs of his apparent weakness. After what seemed like ages, Leo sighed and turned away. "You will tell me when you are ready to talk about what happened, right?"

"Whatevah," Raph replied, not giving an affirmative or a negative. He still needed to piece together what happened himself. Until that time, he did not think he could say anything to his brothers about what the kid had shown him.

It flashed over his eyes again, the look on that guy's face; it was one that could have probably given the Shredder a run for his money. Raph felt himself shudder, and he could only hope that none of his brothers were watching him.

He fell back onto the couch and draped one arm over his eyes. The soft sliding of a bamboo and paper door echoed through the lair as it signaled their sensei coming out of his meditation. Raphael wanted to get up and run over to his father. He wanted to fall into his arms like he was six years old again and just let him comfort him, but he could not. He just lay there, not moving, and not even acting as if he heard his father's footsteps.

But he did hear them. That was all he heard. He focused on that soft plodding sound his father made. The sudden knock of wood identified the cane he used. A quick series of rappings as his claws connected with concrete soothed Raphael the most. He forced himself to follow the rhythmic pattern his father had. He tapped his plastron with one finger every time that walking stick fell.

Then, the rhythm stopped. "My sons," the aged and wise voice filled the room and it filled Raphael with an immense calmness that he cherished right then. But it was short lived as his father continued. "In my meditations, I have sensed of some ill omen. Somehow I know you are all involved in it. Did something happen to you on the surface today?"

Silence followed. Seconds ticked by as no one in the room spoke. Raphael knew his father was patient, but he knew that every moment that they all remained silent forced another worried pang to rush over their sensei's heart. Someone had to speak soon, but it could not be him. He was not the one to speak, not yet at least, and he silently chided himself on being so selfish, but he knew his words could only make things worse, whether they were the truth, or a lie.

So he kept silent.

"We…encountered somebody," Leo finally said, breaking the silence. Raph pulled his arm off his eyes so he could gaze around. It sounded like Leo's voice had come from just over the couch, but he must have been just beyond sight, since Raph did not see anyone there. "He…he defeated us all with ease."

"My sons." Master Splinter's voice was heavy with sympathy and concern. "Do not feel disheartened. I would rather you have run from a new enemy that wanted you dead with everyone safe and sound rather than have you try to confront him-."

"No, sensei," Leo interrupted. Raph sat up on the couch and looked at Leo. His brother was standing just a few feet from him. He was tense, and his hands were starting to go pale with how tight a fist he was making. His face was downcast and his eyes shut tight. His body shook as he struggled to tell their sensei. "W-We did not run from him."

Raph looked at Splinter. The old rat's eyes were wide and his brow furrowed as he stared at Leonardo with that strange understanding puzzlement he seemed to be able to create. "What do you mean, my son?"

Leo trembled. Raph knew that he felt dishonored by what the kid did to them, but he was shocked to see Leo this distraught. "_We_ confronted _him_. He assaulted a person in the street, and then we tried to take him one, but he defeated us. And then he left."

Splinter tried to keep an air of calm about him, but Raphael could sense the shock that his master felt. He looked to each of his sons in turn. "He defeated you? All of you?" His voice wavered. "Who was this enemy?"

"Some, kid, we never got a name," Mikey interjected. He was standing over the reservoir pool, examining his reflection. He looked as if someone had told him that TV was just declared an illegal drug and was no longer allowed to be watched. "But he got all of us. All but Donatello. He didn't fight."

Raph flinched. He did not like Mikey bringing that up, and he thought that Master Splinter did not need to hear it either. And although he wanted to hear the reason himself, he was more shocked by Leo's reaction.

"That's right," Leo said stomping over to where Donnie sat in his computer chair. "You just stood their while we fought. You watched us get beaten. What would you have done if he had wanted to kill us? What would you have done if he had taken one of us as a prisoner? WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE DONE?" Leo grabbed Donnie and threw him onto his computer desk. Bits from unfinished protects scattered and broke on the floor. Leo pinned his brother under him with one arm plastered across his plastron. Raph rose from his seat on the couch, Master Splinter watched with his mouth agape, but Mikey just flinched slightly and continued to fascinate himself with the rippling waters.

Finally, Master Splinter found his voice. "Leonardo!" he chastised. Leo immediately let go of Don, but the icy glare that had found its way into his eyes continued to assault him.

"I'm sorry, sensei," Leo said, addressing his father in his usual calm manner.

"Do not apologize to me, Leonardo," he said with firm conviction. His eyes narrowed at his son, and he made no apparent attempt to hide the disappointment he felt. "Apologize to your brother. Never treat another member of this family with such disrespect again."

"I am sorry, Donatello." And he bowed to Don who was sitting up from his place on the table, his eyes betraying how distraught he was as he never once raised them to his apologizing brother.

Raph noticed the insincerity in Leo's voice. Although his voice was calm, and his words were spoken with decorated compassion and remorse at what he had done, Leo addressed Donnie by his full name. Leo would only apologize to his brothers using their full names if the disappointment in his own actions was clearly evident in his voice. There was no regret or any shred of evidence that he was distraught, but he did the perfect apology so that his appearance to their sensei was still maintained. Raph always thought that Leo knew exactly how to work out their father's sympathy and this was the prime example.

But that did not mean that Raph would sit back and let Leo treat his brother like that. He vaulted the couch and ran up to Leo, sticking his beak mere inches from his brother's. "Why don't ya try a real apology Leo?" His voice was graveled as he showed his frustration, but Leo made no reaction.

"I apologized to him," Leo replied in a calm and quiet manner. "What more do you want Raph? He did freeze on us. He watched that boy torture you and didn't lift a finger."

"That kid didn't torture me Leo," Raph choked out. "You have no idea what he did ta me."

"Well it wasn't good, Raph. And even if it didn't hurt you, how can you be so calm that your brother didn't help you?"

"Donnie would have helped if he could have," Raph roared. "Ain't that right, Donnie?" Raph looked to his younger brother, but Donatello just stood beside his workbench, apparently fascinated with the patterns of the metal grate floors.

"Donnie," Raph insisted. "Tell Leo it was just a fluke and that there's no way you would ever abandon us in a fight." Don's only response was to flinch slightly and ball his hands into tight fists. Raph was getting paranoid. Why was his brother not defending himself?

Leo seemed ready to give an explanation. "See," he said, not bothering to hide his own frustration. "He would have left us to that sadistic freak."

"That kid was not a sadistic freak, Leo," Raph growled. "And I bet Donnie saw that."

Leo looked at Raph, a look of strange realization on his face. "My god, he's brainwashed you."

Raph was taken aback at that statement. "What? No! Leo, I'm not brainwashed."

"Then why are you defending Donnie and the kid right now?"

"Because you didn't see what I saw," Raph screamed.

"Then why don't you tell me what you saw?" Leo ordered.

Raph hesitated. Now that that was brought up, he realized he had no idea how to explain it to them. He was not even sure _he_ completely believed in what he saw. He did not want to do this now.

He glanced around at everyone around him. Leo was staring at him full bore, a stern and impatient visage. Mikey was still standing over the reservoir, but he had turned slightly so that he was half facing Raphael now. His eyes contained a strange needy sadness that expressed all too clearly how confused he was. Splinter was eyeing Raph with an acutely interested expression on his face, however, his eyes never stayed on him for long as they darted around the room to look at the other turtles.

Donnie was the only one not looking at him. At the mention of what Raph had seen, he had quickly turned back to the disheveled desk that accounted for his workbench. He sat down in that swivel stool he kept there and buried his face in his palms, silently sobbing to himself.

But Raph noticed something else. His eyes widened for a second as he realized what it was, but he suddenly felt a flood of relief over come him as he realized that he could use it as an excuse from telling them about his vision. He then reprimanded himself for using this in such a way. _Don, forgive me for this,_ he thought to himself.

He briskly approached Don and said in an authentically concerned voice, "Don, you're hurt."

All eyes turned to Don where everyone noticed a long deep river of blood flow down Don's arm from an area that currently housed several bits of broken glass and jagged metal. He had obviously gotten it from when Leo threw him on the table. Mike and Master Splinter followed Raph to Don's side where they began to hastily fuss over the wound, Master Splinter most of all.

They began ushering the still sobbing Donatello towards the infirmary when Leo, who had not moved an inch, stated, "You haven't answered my question yet."

Raph turned to glare at his brother. "Don's hurt. We'll talk about this later."

"You are not using this as an excuse, Raph." Raphael flinched. "You are going to tell me what that kid did to you, NOW!"

"ENOUGH!!" All four of the turtles were always amazed at just how loudly their old sensei could bellow. He was standing in the infirmary doorway, a serious and angry look on his face. Michelangelo was easing Donatello down onto the bed, but his eyes were focused on his father. Don refused to look up.

The four waited in silence for their father to speak. Splinter coughed loudly, clearing his throat. "I do not know what it is that you all faced on the surface; however, I do know that whatever it was, it is more important than your brother's health.

"There is obviously a lot going on right now, and I would like for you all to tell me what happened, after we tend to Donatello's wounds." The last bit came with a furious glare sent to Leonardo. "When we have finished, I will speak with you each individually, since it seems there is a serious disagreement amongst all of you as to what exactly transpired. When that is settled, we will discuss it as a family, and I will decide what should be done from there. Are we all agreed on this?"

Michelangelo and Raphael nodded fervently. Leonardo dropped his head once in a nod. Donatello continued to keep himself in a catatonic stupor, but a slight bob of his head seemed to represent the final nod. "Good. Michelangelo, go boil some water," Splinter ordered. Mike hurriedly escaped to the kitchen. "Raphael, Leonardo, you two will remain in the main area and try to act civil towards one another. You will not discuss your encounter, and you will not continue this pointless fighting. Use this time to clear your thoughts and think about what you want to tell me." With that, Splinter turned around and returned to the infirmary to treat Don's wound.

Raph made his way to the couch and lied down, never once taking a look at Leo. He agreed with Splinter that talking one at a time to him alone was probably the best idea right now, unfortunately that did not mean he had any idea of what to tell him. The vision played itself over and over in his mind. There was no doubt anymore. That guy raped some girl, and that kid had somehow shown it to him. He did not know how, nor did he even know if the vision was real, but he did know that he needed to talk to the kid before he confronted his father on the topic.

* * *

One hour later, Splinter emerged from the infirmary drying his hands with a clean cloth. Donatello slowly entered the main room behind him, his arm now thickly wrapped in a stream of clean gauze. He was looking up now, although he still had that depressed look to his eyes and he never held eye contact with his brothers for very long. 

Splinter sighed. It was time to talk to his sons. He was curious to no end to find out what could make them behave this way towards each other, but that same thought also frightened him.

Since Leonardo and Raphael seemed set in their views as to what happened, Splinter realized that hearing them first would probably make him take the wrong side early on, and Michelangelo seemed utterly bewildered by all the chain of events, so he doubted he would get any useful information out of him. That only left Donatello, even though he did not seem ready to speak on the matter. But Splinter had no choice. Donatello had always been one to look at situations logically and make detailed mental notes, so Splinter figured that Don, no matter what his actions were, had the clearest picture in mind as to what happened. He just hoped his reclusive and secretive son would be willing to talk with him.

He turned to face his three other sons that were all in the living room, patiently waiting for him to say something. He cleared his throat and said, "I will speak to Donatello first." Leonardo looked like he was about to protest, but Splinter silenced him with a stern glare. "I will hear no objections on this matter. We will be in my room. No one is to disturb us until we are finished. Come Donatello." Splinter gestured for his last son to follow him and headed towards his private sanctum.

Donatello hesitated for a brief moment, eyeing the sliding paper door frame to Splinter's room with a look of absolute horror. His eyes fell to the floor again and he slowly began following his father.

Splinter was just about to slide the door open and gesture for his son to enter, when a strange, chilled gust ruffled his fur and gi. He glanced around, but did not see anything, and that only made his sudden feeling of apprehension rise. He moved away from the door and anxiously searched the open space of the lair's main living quarters. Something was amiss, and he did not like it.

"I am disappointed in you acolytes," came a familiar disembodied voice. "It seems that the nezumi was the only one who was able to sense my arrival."

From the upper floors of the lair, a shadow jumped down and landed silently on the grates of the lair. The figure was feminine, with long billowing white hair, most of which was tied in braids and loops at the top, but a long portion was left to fall down to the middle of her back from the very top of her head. She wore a bright green gi that matched the eerie green glow that emanated from her eyes. Leather cords were tightly bound around her lower arms and legs. The tetsubo (studded heavy club) she always carried was slung to rest across her shoulders. She was one of the Ninja Tribunal, the ninjutsu master of Strength.

"Aahh! All this jumping is hard on my legs. Stairs are so much easier." Splinter and the four turtles turned their attention to the staircase where a very short chubby man with long white hair and a long beard was slowly descending. To say he was fat was easily an understatement as half of his legs were probably being swallowed whole by his blubber, but still, that did not detract from the amount of respect he had garnered from Splinter and the turtles.

"Ancient One," Splinter said bowing deeply to the chubby man.

The Ancient One smiled and returned the gesture to the old rat. "It is good to see you and your sons again, Splinter-san," he said in his high pitched voice. "Now where do you keep the chocolate?"

"Enough chatter," the female ninja bellowed. Everyone's attention quickly shifted towards her, but none of the looks were excited or overjoyed by her presence. In fact, even though she was much older, wiser and more powerful than the Ancient One. Splinter's respect for the woman was closer to his amount of respect for Bishop, the mad government agent who oh so often tormented him and his sons.

"Chikara-Shisho-sama," Splinter said, his voice full of icy malice as he feigned respect. "I would much appreciate it if the next time you are going to enter my home, you notify me ahead of time instead of arriving unannounced and uninvited."

"Be quiet rodent," Chikara ordered as harshly as ever. "I did not come here to speak with you. I came to speak with the acolytes." She turned her attention to the three turtles in the living room and gestured for Donatello to join them, but he did not move. Chikara either did not notice or did not care as she continued speaking. "I have come to pass on a message from the Ninja Tribunal. There is a being running through your city that we have been having trouble with for some time now. We felt that it be best for you to know about it so you can prepare yourselves to deal with it should the time arise."

The room was silent for several moments as Chikara's words sunk in. There was no denying who she was talking about. Even Master Splinter was certain that Chikara was referring to this boy that his sons had just encountered.

"I never expected the high and mighty Ninja Tribunal would be so concerned ovah some New Yorkah," Raph joked trying to sound vaguely interested.

"Be quiet, Raph," Leo chided and then turned to Chikara. "Who is this being that you speak of?" Splinter saw a calculating glint in his son's eyes. He was obviously trying to confirm something.

"He is clever with a strange control over the natural forces of the world. He is tricky and will sometimes attack unprovoked. Although he has not yet made a play for power as of yet, the Ninja Tribunal feels that it is only a matter of time before he does."

"So why are ya tellin' us this?" Raph complained.

"So that you know what you are dealing with when you take care of him for us," Chikara explained with a smirk of her own.

"So you're dumpin' your problems on us again," Raph growled. "Big surprise there."

"If you think he's so dangerous, why don't you get rid of him yourself?" Mike asked.

"As I said before, he is a clever one Michelangelo," Chikara said clearly annoyed at the question. "He has been capable of eluding us for several years now."

"Master Chikara," Leo said calmly. "Does this person take the form of a smiling teenager in a long black coat?"

Chikara's eyes narrowed at Leo's inquiry. "I see you have already encountered him then," her voice was calmer and it was the closest to soothing you could get with her cold gravel. "Yes, that is the common visage the entity displays. I trust then, that you have defeated him?"

Leo closed his eyes and shook his head. "No lady," he said softly. "He defeated us. But he did attack us in some strange way. My brother Raph took the worst hit."

"Leo," Raph growled, but he said no more than that.

The Ancient One took this news very seriously. "If they were all defeated so easily by this boy, perhaps he is more powerful than we first thought," he suggested stroking the silky hairs of his beard.

Chikara quickly shook her head. "More likely they underestimated him and made foolish mistakes," she admonished. Raphael had to bite back a retort. "You have all been trained by the Ninja Tribunal. You are the strongest fighters on this world, so you should all be able to handle a silly little child. I expect you to deal with this threat soon." She turned and nodded to the Ancient One signaling that they were leaving.

"What makes you think he is a threat?"

Chikara stopped in her tracks. Six sets of eyes slowly turned in the direction of the voice. Donatello stood beside one of the many support beams of the structure. He was focused on Chikara, his eyes still awash with sadness, but a familiar sense of curiosity and desire to understand also filled him. He took several cautious steps towards the ninja master before repeating his question, "Why do you think he is a threat?"

"Because he is dangerous, Donatello-san," Chikara explained quite simply. "He wields wild powers that are beyond control. He is capable of hurting a lot of people with those powers. He can not be allowed to roam freely."

"By that definition, you and the Ninja Tribunal should be considered dangerous as well," Donatello stated matter-of-factly.

Chikara gave him a deathly glare. "The Ninja Tribunal are of a higher authority. We do not control forces of nature. We _are_ forces of nature. We decide what power is allowed and what is not. The strengths we taught you and your brothers came from within you. This boy uses powers around him, and that can not be tolerated."

"So you want to get rid of him because the way he obtains power is not the same way that you obtain power?" Donatello asked.

"So you mock me Donatello? The boy is dangerous, and that is all there is to it."

"So you are afraid of him. That's the reason you want him gone."

"The Ninja Tribunal fears nothing." Chikara reared back and let loose a ferocious punch which connected squarely on Donatello's beak. He flew backwards and landed on one of the railings of the platform, denting the metal with a large shell shaped imprint.

Splinter rushed to his son's side. He was still conscious, but his attention had fallen to the floor as he let his body rest limply against the bent rail. A small trickle of blood fell from his mouth, and he coughed quietly, splattering his plastron with more droplets of the red liquid.

"Do not question me again," Chikara announced, and she stalked off, disappearing from view in a sudden puff of green smoke and energy.

The Ancient One moved over to where Splinter and Donatello sat. "I am sorry," he said. "This was meant to be a simple warning that your sons should watch themselves. This was never supposed to happen."

"Be sure that the Ninja Tribunal does not act this way in my home again, Ancient One." Splinter was harsher than he had intended, but after seeing his already injured son assaulted for a second time by people he thought he did not have to worry about, he was not in the best mood for apologizing.

The Ancient One gave the old rat a deep bow. "I will do my best to keep them in check. Your sons are strong, Splinter-san. I am sure they will know how to handle themselves when they meet this enemy again. They may have lost the amulets that the Tribunal gave them to help them focus their chi as physical manifestations; however, that power they unlocked has not left them. They can still learn to wield it with proper practice. And that power should be all they need to defeat this enemy."

"Thank you, Ancient One," Splinter said sighing as he helped Donatello get to his feet. He pulled a small handkerchief out of his belt and began wiping the blood off of his son's chest. "Remember that you are always welcome here. Just remember to leave the animals at home."

The Ancient One chuckled silently at the jest and quickly nodded. He turned to leave the same way that Chikara had left. But then, Donatello's voice caused him to stop. "Ancient One, what do you think about the boy?"

Splinter looked at his son, concern and interest at his sons question flooding his thoughts. He looked back to the Ancient One who had stopped mid-stride to contemplate the question. "As you said Donatello, their reasoning for being concerned for the boy can be considered as an excuse for one to be concerned of _them_ as well. However that same reasoning can be used to describe concern for you and your brothers with your power of ninjutsu, or for a country's government and their power over bombs, or even just a simple citizen who has gained power over those small metal things they call guns. The real deciding factor is whether or not they intend to use the power for good or evil."

"And what do you think the boy intends to use his power for?" Donatello asked.

"I do not know," the Ancient One admitted with a sad sigh. "His intentions are unclear as of right now. And it is that lack of clarity that scares the Ninja Tribunal. After all, it is only human for one to fear what they do not understand." With that, another puff of smoke signaled the exiting of the Ancient One.

Splinter looked back at his son, his expression quickly turning to one of surprise. Donatello's features had lost that lingering sadness that had been plastered on him since they had gotten home. He now looked confident and determined, his eyes now burning with a new life.

He stood so quickly that Splinter barely had time to get out of his way. "My son," he said desperately. "You are still injured."

"I'm fine sensei," Donatello insisted. "Besides, I just heard the one thing I have been waiting to hear someone say for ages."

"And what exactly was that Don?" Leonardo asked, the eyes he looked at Donatello with still contained a hint of the anger he had so physically expressed to his brother over an hour ago.

But Don seemed to not even notice the cold feelings coming from his brother. He simply smiled, displaying a wide set of bloodstained teeth. "As the Ancient One said, 'It is only human to fear what one doesn't understand.'"

Splinter nodded in understanding as to what his son was getting at. "And the Ninja Tribunal fears the boy because they do not understand his power. So the Ninja Tribunal, although over 1700 years old, is still human in mind and soul." Donatello nodded.

"Hmph," Leo grunted and turned away. "That doesn't mean they're wrong."

"No, it does not," Splinter accepted. "But it does mean that we should think this through. All of us." Splinter turned back to his room. "Now then, let me speak with you all like we originally planned. Donatello, you are still first, and then I will speak with Michelangelo, then Leonardo, and then Raphael." He headed for his room but was stopped by Michelangelo's sudden voice.

"Hey, where is Raphael anyway?" He asked.

Splinter caught his collapsing head with his furry palm, letting it shake from side to side. He turned around and scanned the area, and, sure enough, Raphael was nowhere in sight. He sighed heavily and moved over to the dojo where his son often went to let out his frustrations, usually on a punching bag or weights.

"He's not there," Donatello said calmly. Splinter turned and gave his son a confused look. Donatello had a serious but concerned look in his eyes, and suddenly, Splinter knew exactly what his son was thinking. "He's gone to find him," he continued. "He's gone to find the boy."

Splinter heard Leonardo swear and Michelangelo jumping up from his position on the couch. "Alright, well…we'll just-," Leonardo began but he was suddenly cut off by none other than Donatello.

"We have to go after him, stop him from finding the kid. We don't know what could happen to him. We'll split up to cover more ground. When one of us finds him, call the others and bring him back home right away." Everyone was taken aback by Donatello's sudden act of throwing himself into a leadership role, so much so that they did not question it and Leonardo and Michelangelo quickly followed their brother out to the sewer entrance of their home.

Splinter was soon left standing alone clutching his staff in both hands. His grip tightened, and he closed his eyes in contemplative thought. He did not even get the chance to tell Donatello to stay back because he was hurt, so he had to settle with what he always did whenever his sons went out chasing after someone or something. Silently, he whispered to the still and quiet airs around him, "Be safe, my sons."

* * *

**A/N** - Yes, this contains quite a bit of supernatural stuff in it. Sorry, I'm a fantasy nut, so I enjoy seeing this stuff. Also, for any of you who have seen at least part of the Lost Season, did you also get the impression that the Ninja Tribunal was a bunch of self righteous stiffs? Because that is about all I saw from them. Well, hope you enjoyed this chapter and please review again. Thanks for reading. 

**P.S. - **Sorry about any grammar mistakes. I try to find them the best I can, but I know I let several slip through that I should have known about.


	4. Chapter 3 The Questions

**A/N - **This Chapter was begging me to write it, so it came out pretty quickly. Sorry there's not much action in it. This story will have action, but probably not until much later. The first half is almost all drama. Enjoy, and, as always, please review.

**DISCLAIMER - **TMNT belong to Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, Mirage Studios and 4Kids Entertainment.

* * *

**CHAPTER 3 - The Questions**

Well calloused and scaled, one would think that the plodding coming from the feet connecting with the concrete roofs would create enough clamor to alert the entire city block. However, the movements of the owner, despite his vociferating personality, came with exceptional grace as second nature as tying one's shoes, leaving the occupants of every building he stumbled across completely ignorant of his presence.

Raphael's movements across the rooftops would normally have been a sight to see for any casual observer, let alone his physical appearance, but this time his feet propelled him with a sense of urgency. His brothers would soon discover that he slipped out shortly before that arrogant self-absorbed excuse for a human, if she could even be called that anymore, left, and that meant that they would soon be chasing after him. He had no idea how much of a head start he had, but he did not want to waste a single inch of it. He needed to find that kid that messed with his head and ask him some questions, and the more time he had with him the better.

A sudden hop up onto a ledge and then a springing motion from his well toned legs sent him flying over an empty alley between buildings. But, either the shadows had played tricks with his eyes, or, and much more likely, he just had not been paying very close attention, the gap suddenly widened beneath him as he misjudged the distance.

Twisting his body in a unique motion his sensei taught him to achieve the maximum distance in a jump, he caught a hold of the other building with one hand as his body collapsed into the wall, forcing what little breath he had from his fiery lungs. Gasping, but quickly reaching up to grab the ledge with his other hand, he hoisted himself up and over onto the roof, sprawling down to lie on his side. After several agonizing coughs, he finally regained his breath and lucidity to his surroundings. Unfortunately, that short break was enough for the pumping adrenaline to slowly dissipate in his system, and he was soon assaulted by a wave of muscle cramps as every joint and nerve screamed in protest to stop moving after over an hour of non-stop sprinting.

Raphael was too worn to do anything but oblige their pleas. He pulled himself up to a sitting position, his shell leaning against a nearby air vent. He closed his eyes and let his arms fall limply to his sides, not daring to move any muscle for fear of hearing his body's method of communication to his brain.

His breathing slowly calmed as he regained control of his senses, and that was when he heard it. Somewhat faintly over the din of the New York bustle, even at night, he could faintly hear a soft melody floating over the rooftops. He listened to it for a moment. It was loud enough that he could identify the distinct rapturing wail that came from a harmonica, although the actual melody sounded nothing like something that should come out of such an instrument.

Raphael opened his eyes and got to his feet, his body's protests barely noticeable as he was seemingly guided to follow the song. He was pulled around the building until he stopped at the corner opposite from where he started. There, on a building just a few feet away, he saw a figure silhouetted with the moon directly behind him sitting atop an old wooden water tower. His hands were held at his mouth as they slowly moved back and forth, shifting the small glinting piece of metal in and out of the moonlight.

Raphael stood transfixed, observing the shadow of a person for several minutes. The melody washed over him and seemed to possess his senses, changing what he felt, tasted and smelt. He watched as the stars surrounding the figure seemed to dance and swim through the sky in a kaleidoscopic torrent. His aching limbs relaxed and unknotted. A woody taste erupted in his mouth that reminded him some what of cinnamon and his nose inhaled the sweet earthy sense of a lightly wooded forest.

Then, just as quickly as everything had assailed him, the melody stopped, and Raphael was left on the roof of a New York apartment complex staring at a solitary figure across from him. The familiar deadly rank of a garbage bin from the alley below him attacked, and Raph grimaced slightly at the sudden change.

Both in an attempt to get away from the stench and to reach what he only hoped was the boy he encountered earlier that day, Raph stepped back a few feet from the edge and did a running leap to the other building, landing silently next to the water tower. He looked up and saw the serenely sad smile of the boy eyeing the mouth harp he gingerly clasped in his fingertips, making sure the surface was illuminated by the night lights.

"It just never sounds the same when I play that song on this," the boy's young voice echoed down to the roof. It seemed lost and vacant, obviously buried deep within an old memory.

"It sounded fine to me," Raphael offered quietly.

He did not think the boy knew he was there, but, he had to admit, he was not surprised when the boy coolly shifted his gaze to stare down at him. His eyes closed as distant words came from him. "You wouldn't think that if you heard it properly."

A sudden blur of movement made Raph blink dumbly at the location the boy had just been. Bringing his gaze down to level with the hidden horizon, Raph saw the boy now leaning against one of the four supports of the water tower giving him a happy grin. "Come for a rematch?" he asked in a singsong voice that seemed shockingly different from his previous tone.

Raph shook his head, trying to force the attitude change from his thoughts. He stopped and glared at the boy. "No," he screamed in a coarse whisper. "I came to ask you some questions."

The boy seemed intrigued by that response and gave Raph a smug shrug. "And why do you think I will answer them?" He asked.

"Nothing tells me you'll answer them," Raph admitted. "But I need answers that only you can give, so that's why I'm here."

The boy brought his hand up to his chin in a thoughtful smiling gesture. "Hmm, so you still don't know, do you?" he said.

Raph looked at him confused and surprised. "Don't know what?"

"Never mind," The boy said. "But I suppose considering what I did to you, you do deserve at least some explanation." He threw his hands in the air and then let them fall to his sides as if in mock defeat. "Very well, ask away and hopefully your questions will be ones I feel like answering."

"So ya still plan on hidin' stuff," Raph growled fingering the tips of his sais.

"Hey, I offered to answer at least some of your questions, which is a hell of a lot more than I have to, so you probably should not complain," The boy sneered.

Raph bit back the retort he had on his mind. The kid was right. He had to keep his anger in check or he was not going to get anything out of him.

Sighing, he let his arms fall to his sides and relaxed from his battle ready position to standing normally, his eyes closed and head bent as he calmed his rising temper. Then, his eyes snapped open and stabbed the kid with the most piercing glare he could muster. "First question," he began slower than he wanted. "That vision. What was it?"

"A memory," the boy said simply, but it was all the answer Raph was looking for.

"Was it real?" he followed up.

"It's impossible for me to create a false memory," the boy explained. "With the abilities that I can currently manifest, creating the illusion of a borrowed memory is nearly impossible. I can only memorize the patterns from someone's brain and then duplicate it into my own mind or someone else's. Sort of like a 'copy' and paste' deal on a computer. If I tried to create a fake one, it would be full of holes and would easily be identified as a simple illusion, even to untrained minds."

Raphael thought for a moment, digesting what the kid had said. He thought he got most of what he was saying, but just to confirm, he asked, "So that memory was one that already existed in someone else's mind. Ya copied it and then showed it ta that body builder, and then ta me, right?"

The boy slowly nodded, the smile never falling from his face.

"So then, that body builder, he actually…actually…" Raph trailed off, unable to actually say what it was he saw.

Thankfully, he did not have to. The boy seemed to realize what Raph was trying to say and nodded again, this time with a hint of remorse hidden under his smile. "The later parts of that memory that I did not show you also contained him beating her to near death in that same hotel room. I found her, hours later, barely conscious and in the bathtub. I called an ambulance and then extracted the memory of what happened to her. She died before the ambulance arrived."

Raph sunk to his knees, barely noticing the grinding of the gravel burying itself homely under his knee pads. "So…You showed that muscle dude what he did to her?" Raph asked.

"Yes,"

"And that's it?"

Raph looked up, a brand new angry fire burning in his eyes. The boy's face took on a look of complete bewilderment at what Raph was accusing. He smiled rather sheepishly and scratched the back of his head. "Should I have done more?"

Raph rose to his feet and glared daggers. "Yes you should have done more," he screamed, not caring at all who heard him. "That guy killed a girl and all you did was show him some freaky vision? You should have called the cops on him or beaten him." He pointed a shaking aching finger at the boy's chest. "I know you can. I've seen you fight. You could have had that son of bitch on his knees begging for mercy if you wanted, couldn't you?"

The boy hung his head solemnly, but that cocky smirk remained, goading Raph's temper to rise even higher. "You make things sound so simple," he said quietly. His head rose and an eerily menacing glare met Raph's eyes. "But things are rarely that simple. That girl he killed was a prostitute who, for many years, spent her time lying, stealing and even mugging people to get money so she could get another cocaine fix. By you ideals, she deserved to be punished as well. Who's to say that body builder did not deal the justice that you seem so ready to hand out? And what good would cops have done? I do not exactly have a home, not to mention the fact that I don't like to be seen, much like you and your brothers. Besides, I have no evidence to prove that the body builder committed the crime beyond that memory, and I doubt any court in the world would accept that as evidence."

Raph stared at him for a few seconds before angrily shaking his head. "That doesn't mean that he had a right to kill her and get away with it," he argued. "He probably did not even know what she had done."

The boy shook his head sadly. "Does that mean_ you_ have the right to kill people? You are a ninja, an assassin. You have killed many, I'm sure, in the name of your own justice. Does that mean that now I should kill you, for what you think is my justice? If a boy is robbing a store, is that all there is to it? What if someone threatened to kill the boy's family if he didn't? Does that still mean he is just a thieving street punk to you?"

Raph could not respond. Every word the boy spoke was true, he knew it. He had killed in the past, foot ninja that were trying to kill him that he had to kill in self-defense usually. Occasionally he had to get a little rougher with street punks who were over confident and seemed to think nothing bad could happen to them, and they would wind up going home with what would probably be more permanent damage.

But the fact was, he had never thought about the circumstances before. In his mind, he saw almost all of those street punks the same. The concept this kid was bringing up was alien to him, yet he had to admit to himself that everything his said was entirely possible.

Seeing Raph's hesitation, the boy sighed heavily. "Rarely is there a circumstance as black and white as you like to imagine," he said. "I have long since given up trying to identify the worst villain and punishing them. Heck, I've pretty much given up on the whole idea of punishment. The only thing that would really solve anything is if someone learned a new lesson, so that's what I do, I try to teach people lessons."

"But what if that's not enough," Raph asked hotly. "What if they don't learn their lesson?"

The boy shrugged and smirked evilly. "I don't have any specific lesson in mind ever. All I do is show them the fierce other side of their actions. In that regard, they can perfectly see, hear and feel what they are actually doing. It's up to them to make the final decision as to whether or not it's worth it."

"And what if they choose to continue doing it?"

"Then I just hope that they know that what they did has ramifications that hurt both them and other people. Maybe the benefits of their actions were necessary, no matter what the cost was?"

"So you sit back and say, 'Oh, I guess that murderer had good reasons for the second and third killing. No more need for me to get involved'?" Raph scowled at the boy and fingered his sais once more. "Some people are beyond what you do, ya know. Some people actually are sick and need to be taken care of."

The boy shot Raph a dangerous look that was filled with anger behind another sneer. "And how exactly do you identify those people, Raphael?"

"Try checkin' there memories. I hear yer good at that."

"And then what? Do I pound them into ground beef like you enjoy doing? Sorry, but I gave up on hurting people. It never solves anything."

"Ya seemed perfectly content with kickin' mine and my bros' shells earlier. Where did that attitude go?"

"I threw you and Leonardo and Michelangelo on your backs to keep you from assailing me," the boy explained rather defensively. "I doubt that any real damage went through your carapace or that thick skull you seem to be so fond of."

"Shut up," Raph roared. "Just shut yer fuckin' mouth. Yer just a coward who's to afraid to actually do some good around here. And another thing, how do you know mine and my brothers' names? Have ya been keepin' tabs on us or somethin'?"

The boy looked away at that last comment. A small cheeky laugh escaped him rather suddenly. "That's not really my place to explain. But don't worry. I'm sure you'll find out the answer to that soon enough."

"You little piece of-." Raph began.

"You really need to watch that temper of yours," the boy said chuckling.

Raph's face went red at the last comment, but the boy was right. He was letting his temper get the better of him, and he needed to cool down. After all, the kid may not have been doing much, but Raph was sure he was not a bad guy. In fact, it seemed like the kid genuinely did want to help out, he just did not know how.

After a couple of deep and focusing breaths, Raph was much calmer. He looked back at the kid who was currently eyeing him with a strangely curious grin on his features. "Why do ya do that, anyway?" Raph asked.

The boy cocked an eyebrow at the turtle. "Do what?" he replied.

"Smile like that," Raph continued. "Since earlier today when I first saw ya, and even durin' this whole argument. Ya haven't dropped that smile. What gives?"

The boy burst into a frantic fit of laughter. It continued for almost a minute during which time, Raph began to get ticked off again. Then he thought about the situation and realized that asking why someone smiled so much after being at each other's throats was actually a very arbitrary thing to ask, and he smiled slightly to himself at the thought.

Soon the boy was choking back the dying laughter as he wiped away some of the tears that had come to his eyes in the midst of the hysterics. "Wow, I did not expect you to ask that then," he gasped. "Sure, I knew it was coming, but just not then."

"Well, why do you?" Raph asked again, his slight impatience seeping into his words.

The boy's eyes fell downcast. "Does one really need an excuse for smiling?" he asked.

Raphael shrugged. "The only person I've known who could smile for no reason is my brother Mikey, and he's an idiot."

The boy shook his head. "You shouldn't say things like that. Just because someone smiles for seemingly no reason doesn't mean that they don't have one. It may just mean that more things make them smile than for you. It is the people who never smile that you should be wary of."

"So you should be wary of me?" Raph asked.

The boy chuckled softly. "You smile often enough. You just smiled at yourself a minute ago for asking me why I smile."

_He noticed that?_ Raph thought, but could not help himself from smiling again, which just made the boy start chuckling again. "So then what's your reason fer smilin'," he asked.

"What indeed." The boy's face grew distant and his gaze shifted to looking up at what few stars were visible in the sky. "I guess I smile because I've forgotten how too."

"Oh great," Raph moaned. "Are you going to start spoutin' some deep soulful shit at me?"

"You asked for it," the boy replied looking back into the mutant's eyes. "The truth is there are so many emotions that are displayed through an amazing number of types of smiles. You can show anger, sadness, joy, confusion, just about anything. But I believe it is when you smile for the sake of smiling that you really feel good. It's been a long time since I have smiled like that, so I guess I walk around and smile in hopes that someday I will smile like that again."

Raph was never one to take that sentimental bullshit well, but what the boy said was simple, and Raph could see what he meant. But that still left another question floating in his mind. "How old are you?"

"Older than you would think," the boy said. "It's hard to explain right now without explaining so much more. Maybe some other time I can share that with you."

"Well then how 'bout at least tellin' me yer name," Raph said. "You know mine and my brothers', but I don't know yours."

The boy's face fell. "I don't have a name."

Raph was utterly confused at that statement. How could this kid not have a name? "Right, so anyway, what is your name, really?"

The boy shrugged. "Call me whatever you want really. I could care less. But believe me when I say I don't have a name. Not one I can honestly give you at least as being my real name."

"What does that mean?"

"It means I have had several names in my life. Most are ones that people have given me, but none that I choose to identify myself with. That kind of name was never really given. So just call me whatever you want and then we will be good."

Raph gave the kid a very confused look, but eventually sighed and shrugged. "Whatevah. If ya want me ta decide what ta call ya, fine." He thought for a moment. "I'll call ya Joss. How's that?" The boy very suddenly stiffened at the mention of that name and Raph gave him another questioning look. "Somethin' the matter with Joss?"

"No, no," the boy said defensively waving a hand in front of him. "It's just…not the first time I've had that name."

"Well good, then ya won't have to worry 'bout gettin' used to it."

"Heh, I guess not," the boy admitting bringing his hand behind his head and laughing.

Raph chuckled slightly too before he continued with his questions. "So how exactly does that memory thing work?" Raphael really hoped the kid would explain this one.

The boy Raph now called Joss stopped laughing and smiled brightly, but then a strange look of interest seemed to flit across his eyes but was then gone. "That's another thing that I think should wait to be told by someone else," he said.

"Why would someone else explain ta me what ya did?" Raph asked. "It's your trick."

"Yes, but I wasn't the one who came up with the concept for it," the boy admitted. "I think the genius who thought of it would be better suited to explain the details. Isn't that right, Donatello?"

Raphael started at the sudden mention of his brother's name. He stared confused at the boy in front of him until he noticed that Joss's eyes were no longer focused on him, but instead seemed to be looking at something just over Raph's shoulder.

_It couldn't be,_ Raph thought to himself as he slowly turned to look at the rooftop behind him.

There, standing still slightly in the shadows of a stairwell house, was the figure of a mutant turtle with a long shaft strapped to his back. The figure took a single step into the light revealing the purple bandana across his eyes and the bandage on his arm that had a couple tiny red dots staining it now from the cut he received a little over an hour ago.

_How long has he been there,_ Raph thought. _And why did Joss say he can explain things for me? _


	5. Chapter 4 The Revelation

**DISCLAIMER - **TMNT belong to Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, Mirage Studios and 4Kids Entertainment.

* * *

**CHAPTER 4 - The Revelation**

Once the three of them were out of the sewers and on the vacant side streets, Don had instructed Leo and Mike to start searching for Raph in North and South town respectively, knowing full well they would not encounter him there. They all agreed to give each other a call if they encountered him, which was fine by him, because it would mean he did not have a time limit to his encounter with Raph and his sensei, and he could bring Raph home whenever he chose.

He knew that Raph had found him. His sensei had probably guided Raph to him since he knew full well that he would be looking for answers. Don had told him that much about Raph, at least. But still, Don worried about how Raph would react when he got a full taste of the boy. It was a difficult thing even for him to get used to that capricious nature, something that would probably be absolutely infuriating to his brother.

Don sighed, dropping his gaze from the Southward horizon of central park that he had been watching Mikey disappear beyond, waiting until he was completely alone before he sought out that confrontation that made his neck itch with unease. He headed east, leaping through the forest along no particular path so as not to be seen by any late night lovebirds wandering around aimlessly. He followed his senses until he was atop rooftops, where he stopped and sat down cross-legged and stared off into the distance.

It was fitting that he used his other sensei's teachings to find him. As he sat, his eyes glazed over and the palms of his hands danced around the rooftops rough surface in small circles. Don let the sensations on his hands tweak his mind into focusing on the rest of his senses, amplifying every scent, noise, taste and feeling in the air until it was almost overwhelming. Only then, when his mind was about to seizure with the over exertion of nerves, did Don shift all of his focus away from those senses, blocking them out of his consciousness, and reshape his sight.

The sudden wave of energy surging through his head almost always made him feel like passing out. The dull ache behind his eyes like something trying to burrow through his skull made him want seal his eyelids shut with two vice grips, but he forced himself to keep them open, as an export for all the energy he was pouring into them.

He watched as the rooftops swiftly flew by beneath him as his sight traveled further and further through the city. The dull monotony of brick and metal boxes littering the landscape stretched as far as an endless sea seen for the first time by a native tribesman from hundreds of years ago. Still, he continued to fly over the mathematically efficient buildings spaced to fit perfectly within the small area of the Manhatten Island, until he finally found them, alone on a rooftop not to far from his current position.

With a sudden rush, his sight returned to normal and his other senses, after being held in remission, exploded in his face like a water balloon left attached to a running faucet. He sat there for several minutes letting his brain and all its normal functions reassert itself as the commander of his vessel body. Finally, when the throbbing headache subsided, he stood and went after his brother.

And that was how he ended up here. He arrived around the time Raph asked the boy for a name, which made Don silently chuckle to himself. He was glad when his brother gave him a name, because Don had about as much luck with getting one out of the kid as Raph did, so, for formalities sake, the only thing Don knew to call the boy was sensei, and he was sure that was not going to fly well with his brothers, or even with Splinter for that matter.

Just then, he heard his name uttered, and he looked up to see that his sensei was now staring past Raphael to look directly at his hiding place. He had been caught and the boy just revealed to Raph that they knew each other. Don sighed, realizing it was too late to go back now, so he put on a calm face and walked out of those serenely comforting and protective shadows to stare at the bewildered expression plastered across Raphael's face.

"Y…you know him?" Raph asked flicking his hand in an odd gesture towards Joss.

Don only nodded, which seemed to light the fuse under Raph's fire. "You knew him all along and ya let us get our shells kicked? Geez Donnie, how could ya not say somethin' earlier?"

"I never thought you guys would ever meet him. I guess I sincerely hoped you wouldn't." Don's gaze fell to the ground unable to look his brother in the eyes. "I didn't think you would all accept the idea of me associating with him, so I kept it secret."

There was a brief moment of pause before Raph said in a much calmer voice, "Alright, why would we not like you knowin' Joss?"

"I…" Don paused, trying to come up with his original reason for not telling his brothers. "I don't know. I guess I just thought you guys would look down on me for what I was learning from him."

"Learning?" Raph exclaimed. Don watched his brother's glance shift from him to his sensei. "What exactly are ya learnin' from this kid?" His tone seemed interested, but there was a hint of an accusatory growl behind it.

But the question he had asked confused Don. Don searched his brother, thinking he was obviously trying to test him, but his expression seemed to be one of genuine ignorance as to what Don meant by 'learning.' "You really don't know?" He asked his red-clad brother.

"Uh, Don," Joss piped up in a strange sheepish voice. "I haven't exactly explained you and me to him. Heck, I haven't really explained what I _do_, either. All I told him was that I showed him a memory and that you were the one who gave me the idea."

"Wait, is that what yer learnin'?" Raph asked, eyes widening. "Yer learnin' how ta mess with people's head?" Raph's eyes narrowed towards his brother. "Shit Don, no wonder you didn't want us findin' out about this. What other secrets ya got that ya don't want us knowin' about." Raphael took several menacing steps towards the purple-clad ninja who shrank back several feet, hands in front of him in a defensive gesture.

"Wait, Raph, it's not like that," Don pleaded. "Yes, I suggested the idea of memory extraction to him, but that's because it was within his specialty. He's taught me to specialize in other areas."

"Why don't ya try tellin' me what it is exactly before ya start sayin' it's different," Raph bellowed.

"Oh, well that's simple enough," the boy said cheerily coming to stand between Raph and Don. "You see, I've been teaching Donatello here how to wield hydromancy and pyromancy."

"Oh yeah, that's real simple," Raph exclaimed hotly, obviously irritated with the confusing lingo and mixed messages being thrown around. "So what are those what-cha-call-its anyway?"

"The simplest way I can put it Raph, is that they are different aspects of magic," Don explained.

The change in Raphael's expression was so sudden that it left Donatello slightly startled. His narrowed eye ridge was gone, replaced with a strange look of confusion complete with one raised eye ridge and his mouth open in a vaguely "o" like formation. And this expression only stayed put for a couple seconds. His expression changed again to one which emitted a gruff but loud hysteric laughter. He doubled over, seemingly losing all muscle control in his body from the mad jocularity, wrapping his arms around his sides as if holding some unknown pain.

Don's sensei gave the reaction a quizzical stare and then looked up at Don with a rather amused expression on his face. "Well he seems to be taking it a lot better than you thought he would," he said cheerily.

Don just stared dumbfounded at his brother lying and twitching on the ground like a beetle flipped on its back unable to right itself. Of everyone, he expected Raph to be the most troubled by Don's decision to study under the boy, let alone keeping it a secret from everyone. This sudden vigorous bout seemed highly uncharacteristic.

It was some time before Raph finally regained some composure over his vocal cords and appendages. He gasped and wheezed as he slowly came to his feet, sweat beading out of every pore on his body and clear tears of merriment soaking his mask to a deep maroon color. "Oh man, ya really had me goin' there fer a second," he said, still bending forward gasping for oxygen. "I mean, ya just said that you were learnin' magic from this kid. You. Donnie. Mister techno babble an' everythin' has to be explained. Ya not only believe in magic, but are learnin' it? HA!"

"Well…Magic isn't exactly the best way to describe it," Don's sensei explained briefly, but it was clear that Raphael was not interested in hearing the explanations.

"Hey Donnie, what'cha use fer pullin' out the rabbit?" he joked. "Yer Mask is a bit see through. I doubt that works." He continued his laughing fit, although the ferocity had died down substantially now.

Don was now the one who was less than amused by the situation. His brow furrowed as he grew more and more annoyed with Raph's coy display of amusement at what he felt was a very serious secret being revealed. Finally, he could not stand it anymore, and he decided to show Raph exactly what he had been learning. He took two long strides to standing next to his brother and tapped one fat finger along the side of his brother's neck.

The laughing faded almost instantly even though Raph's mouth kept shaking wide open, although that did not last long as soon as Raph noticed the sudden silence as well. His eyes widened in shock, and he turned a furious gaze at the purple-clad turtle with disbelief flooding his vision.

"I coated your vocal cords with a thin membrane of fluid that keeps them from creating sound," Don explained. "If you want your voice back, shut up and listen to what I have to say."

Raph ground his teeth so hard Don was sure he heard a small cracking noise. His features relaxed, and he grunted, at least it looked like he grunted, his agreement to shut up.

Don gave a slight nod. "Good," he exclaimed.

Don tapped Raph on the neck again, and he immediately exhaled an immense and audible sigh he had been holding in. He glanced over at his brother, no more signs of anger in his eyes, just a look of complete astonishment as to what had just happened. "So what is this hydro, pyro stuff anyway? Don't those mean water and fire or somethin'?" Don cocked a moderately amused eyebrow at his brother who just huffed at the intended statement the gesture made. "Hey, I listen to ya enough ta pick up a few things."

Don looked over at the boy who gave him a reassuring smile that it was okay to continue explaining. "Literally the definition of hydromancy and pyromancy is divination through means of scrying pools and fires." Raph gave him an annoyed glare at the word divination, so Don quickly translated, "Fortune telling, although that has absolutely nothing to do with what I work with."

"It's really closer to controlling fire and water and their properties," the boy offered as his explanation.

But Don quickly shook his head. "That doesn't really describe them well either," he countered. "Hydromancy is more the control of liquid phases of matter and chemical reactions as well as heat energy transference. It also deals with the shifting of phases of matter." He looked at his brother whose brow was furrowed in confusion. "You aren't getting much of this, are you?"

"I…I think I got most of it," Raph said desperately trying to save himself some face. "But, ya said you can move heat wit' yer water control right? Shouldn't that be yer fire control?"

Don shook his head. "Pyromancy controls more of the kinetic energy transference and controlling plasma phase matter."

Raph shook his head. "Alright, that's enough, simple description please." He sent a killing glare towards the kid the second he let out a chuckle at the request for simplification.

Don sighed and rubbed his temple, trying to come up with an easy way to describe these things. "Let's just stick with fire and water control, alright?"

Raph shrugged. "Fine by me. So this pyromancy and hydromancy are your specialties I'm guessin', and ya said that that memory stuff was within his specialty." Raph jabbed his thumb in Joss's direction. "So what's his specialty?"

"Um, I'm right here and you can ask me that too, you know," Joss mentioned.

Raph eyed the kid dangerously, but his frown quickly changed to a strange smirk. "Yer right, I can ask ya about it yerself, and I suppose I should. Sorry 'bout that."

Don shook his head furiously the second his brother apologized. He was sure he had just heard something wrong. Raph only rarely apologized to Splinter, and here he was apologizing to the kid? He stared very confused towards his elder brother, but the confusion quickly melted away when Raph turned back to him and said, "So Don, what's this kid's specialty?"

Don blinked, but he could not help himself and let out a short burst of laughing. Joss made a small face of indignation, but Don was positive it was an act. Calming himself down, Don looked to his brother to answer his question. "He specializes in coulomancy, the control of lightning and electricity."

Raph raised his eye ridges. "Huh, that sounds…useful," Raph said, obviously struggling to find the right words. He reached up and scratched his head as something still bothered him. "So why ain't that _your_ specialty Donnie, especially if ya love electronics so much."

Don smiled at the fact that his brother thought his world revolved around machines. Sure a large portion of it did, but still, that had nothing to do with what he specialized in. He gave a small shrug. "Engineering is just my hobby Raph. I chose hydromancy because I'm a turtle and pyromancy because of the healing properties the category has."

Raph crossed his arms across his chest and squinted his eyes as he thought about everything Don had told him so far. "I guess that all makes sense," he said somberly. He glanced over to the boy who was calmly leaning against the support leg of the water tower watching them with that strange grin spread over his face. He turned back to Don and said, "So why are ya keepin' this a secret from us? Joss here seems like an okay kid, if a bit hard on the edges, course I'm one ta talk." Raph gave a wide smirk which actually made Joss chuckle again.

"Actually," Joss butted in as he straightened from his leaning position and took a step towards them. "I told him that he should limit who he tells about this. I don't want people learning how to use these abilities if I don't trust them to use it properly. When I finally decided to teach Donatello here how to use it, it was because I trusted his judgment and that he would use it sparingly. Although, I admit, I never forbade him from telling you and the rest of your family. That is just something he decided on himself."

Raph looked back to his brother whose face still showed a confusing mix of emotion that seemed to center around guilt and worry, but Raph was starting to get frustrated and felt no inclination to comfort his brother at this moment. "So did ya not trust us or somethin' Donnie? Is that why ya kept it a secret?" Raph clenched his hands into fists until small poppings indicated the cracking of knuckles.

Don cringed at the accusation but said nothing. He could not tell Raph why he kept it secret from them. It was nothing about his family that he wanted to keep this from them. He trusted them with his life and this knowledge. That was why, after all, he was telling all this to Raph right now, but that did not mean he could tell them why he kept it all to himself. He had his reason, and he just hoped that everyone would understand.

Raph saw the downcast look in his brother's eyes and sighed heavily. He trusted Don's judgment more than anyone else's next to Splinter's. He had to believe that Don had good reason to not tell them all, so he decided to just accept it.

Instead of continuing to accuse his brother, Raph decided it would be better to ask the last thing that was nagging the back of his mind. "Hey Don," he said, trying to sound as non-menacing as possible. Donatello hesitantly raised his head to look at his brother who was no longer looking at him with any anger or frustration, but instead he seemed interested as his eyes looked down to Don's shoulder. "Ya said that one of yer magics had healing abilities right?" Don nodded. "So why haven't ya healed up that shoulder of yours. You've already told me ya can."

Don slowly brought his hand up to touch his gauze wrapped bicep. He had forgotten about that. After locating them earlier, the headache he had earned had shut the pain in his shoulder out of his mind. "I forgot about this," he admitted chuckling softly. "I suppose I should deal with it."

He began to slowly and tenderly tap various areas of the bandage. It seemed that most of his prods were centered on the areas where blood was staining and seeping through the gauze. After every tap, a soft orange light was left lingering where his finger had been, and then it would slowly fade after a second or two.

As he worked, Donatello looked at Raph who was watching with mild interest. But his brother's natural impatience was beginning to take over and Don started to notice the evidence of Raphael becoming bored. He shuffled his feet slightly and then began pacing around the roof. He pulled one sai out of his belt and began lazily spinning it around his bulky fingers.

Donatello sighed and switched his attention to his sensei. He stopped cold, his hand hovering just inches over his arm. The boy was not looking at him or at Raph. His eyes were closed and his head bent slightly. His arms were crossed in front of him and it was clear he was in deep thought.

But none of this was what worried Donatello so much. What worried him was the fact that the boy was no longer smiling. He was not frowning or scowling, but his mouth was limp and emotionless as he thought. Don remembered seeing this only once before and it was during a topic of discussion that he never wanted brought up again. He quickly looked away from his sensei, but just as he did so, Joss spoke up in a voice that was strangely tiny and quiet and lacked any of its usual mirth. "How did you get hurt Don?"

Don's head snapped back to the boy who was now looking at him with pleading eyes, begging him to tell him. Don quickly looked at his arm and tried his best to put on a casual face. "It was nothing really," he lied. "One of my experiments blew up in my face. I let the methane tank run a little too long before I lit it, and I singed my arm in the process."

Don noticed Raph give him the briefest of quizzical looks before he went back to twirling his sai, thankfully deciding not to say anything. Unfortunately, it seemed the boy caught the small gesture, because his attention suddenly darted to Raph who began to fidget in annoyance under the piercing gaze. He studied and scrutinized Raph's behavior for what seemed like an eternity before he finally lowered his eyes to the ground and frowned. "It was Leonardo, wasn't it?" Joss asked.

There was a loud clattering as Raph's sai fell to the ground as his hands stopped the motion that was keeping it in the continual rotation. "H-How did you guess that?" he asked quite shocked, but his expression quickly turned to rage. "Why did ya just decide to blame Leo for that?"

The boy shook his head and said softly, "So it's starting."

Don clenched his fists and he gave Joss a dangerous glare. "Nothing is starting," he cried. "He is not going to turn out like you suspect."

"They always do, Donatello," the boy continued in that soft tone. It seemed like he was trying to comfort the two terrapins with his words, although he was having the exact opposite affect. "I told you before. I have seen this far too many times in the past and I don't want you getting hurt. Sever your ties to him before it's too late."

"You know I'll never do that," Don screamed. "He's my brother. I don't care what you think of him, I will never abandon him or any other member of my family."

"Don," Raph said, a menacing growl beginning to burn in the back of his thought. "What exactly is he talking about?"

Don glanced at Raph and then quickly looked away. He could not bear to look at his brother. He was too ashamed for that. This was why he never wanted his family to find out about Joss. This was the secret he kept, and right now he still could not bring himself to say it.

But his sensei had no qualms against saying it to Raph. "Your brother Leonardo, he will betray you," he stated offensively bluntly. Raph twitched slightly at the accusation, but he remained motionless, too shocked to move, so the boy continued. "I have seen far too many people like him; people who crave power and strength but with a twisted sense of morals and honor. Eventually, someone will come to him and offer him strength in a form that will be agreeable to his morals, and he will accept it over you and the rest of your clan. He is selfish, no matter what mask of a self sacrificing guardian he puts on."

Raph's body was visibly convulsing worse and worse as every word fell from the boy's lips. His eyes were narrowed so much that it was a wonder he could even still see. Finally, the boiling fury became too much to bear, and he lashed out, pulling his last remaining sai from his belt. "Don't you _ever_ talk shit about Leo like that again!" He screamed as he stabbed straight at the boy's heart.

Joss quickly sidestepped away from the blow, and Raph stumbled slightly as he twisted and slashed at Joss's head. The boy ducked backwards, the metal prongs whistling just over his nose. Raph lifted his leg to drop kick the boy, but the kid did a quick back flip and landed neatly several feet out of reach just as Raph's leg came crashing down on his previous location.

Raph prepared to charge again, but quite suddenly two strong arms wrapped around his shoulders and held him back. "Stop it Raph. He'll just throw you on your shell again."

"Donnie," Raph growled as he pulled himself free from the grip and whirled to stare down his little brother. "Are you actually defendin' his sorry ass?"

"No," Don growled in a voice with enough loathing to make Raph flinch in surprise even in his mad rage. Don gave his brother a serious look. "You attacking him won't solve anything other than getting yourself hurt. I should know, I did the same thing the first time he said that."

Raph eyed his brother for a moment before he turned a ruthless eye to the boy who was now wearing a sad smile across his face as he watched the two carefully. "I'm sorry, but it's the truth," the boy said.

Raph's grip on his weapon tightened so that the scales on his knuckles began to turn white. Don saw this and put a gentle restraining hand on Raph's shoulder which was promptly shrugged off. "Let's go home," Don suggested unable to keep the anger he felt for his other sensei right now out of his voice.

Raph nodded slightly and bent down and swiftly flipped the fallen sai off the ground and shoved both weapons deep into his belt. He turned and stalked to the roof edge before leaping across the gap. Don gave on last anger filled glance to the boy before following his brother, ignoring the desperate apologies that were following him.

He quickly caught up to Raph who had stopped a few roofs away. Suddenly, the sai wielder spun around and advanced on Don quite suddenly. Don took a startled step back at the sudden threatening gesture, but made no other motion as Raph got his beak right up to Don's face. "What the hell, Donnie," Raph screamed. "Just…What the hell? What's his problem with Leo?"

Don threw his hands in the air and let them plummet back to his sides. "I honestly have no idea," he admitted. "The only thing I can think of is that someone he knew who may have acted a lot like Leo betrayed him at some point, and now he's taking it out on Leo." Don turned back to glance in the direction they had been running. They were obviously out of sight now, but Don could still see the shadow of the water tower in the distance. "This is why I never wanted to introduce him to you guys. I can't stand the way he talks about Leo, and I never wanted to see the way he reacted to Leo in front of you all."

He turned to face Raph who was still visibly fuming. "I don't think he would ever say anything in front of everyone, but still, it's a part of him that I'm not proud to know."

"How does he even know about Leo?" Raph wondered aloud.

Don hung his head. "I let him practice the memory transference on me."

Raph stared at his brother, a look of shocked anger frozen under his mask. "He needed someone to perfect the maneuver with, so I offered some simple memories I had of training and family gatherings," Don continued. "I never thought he would get such a negative reaction from them."

"He probably took more memories from you than ya know about," Raph sneered.

"Maybe," Don admitted. "But I like to think he didn't."

"Do ya trust him that much," Raph asked.

Don shook his head again. "I honestly don't know."

Raph grunted and turned away. The two stood on that roof in silence for several moments. It was not until the obnoxious sound of a shell cell ringing did either of them move. The sudden noise startled them both, and two pairs of eyes shifted to staring at Donatello's belt. Reluctantly, Don reached down and removed the small electronic device from its pouch and put it to his ear. "Yes?" he asked into the speaker.

"Don, it's Leo," the voice on the other end said. "Mikey wasn't having any luck in his area, so we met up and decided to enlist April and Casey's help. We're over at April's place right now. You should meet us too, so we can regroup and come up with a better plan of looking for Raph."

"That's not necessary Leo," Don said through the line. "I was just about to give you a call and tell you guys I found him. We're heading home now, so we will meet you back at the lair. Bring April and Casey with you. There's something I need to tell you all."

There was a brief pause from the other end. Then, Leo's voice appeared sounding rather confused and a bit concerned. "Did something happen to you guys? Did you meet the kid? Are you both alright?"

It was Don's turn to pause as a small smile crept across his beak. _There's no way he would betray us,_ he thought. _He cares about us too much._ "No, we're both fine," he said into the phone. "We got away from the kid before any fighting happened."

Raph mouthed a 'Thank You,' but Don quickly waved it off. "Alright, we'll meet you at the lair," Leo said. "Catch ya later bro."

"See ya, Leo," Don said, and he hung up.

Looking over at Raph, Don made a 'follow me' gesture and said, "They're waiting for us. Let's get back." Raph nodded and they both bounded off across the roofs towards home.

* * *

A figure clad in shadows that seemed to wrap around his body and draw him into the invisible nothing of the air watched the two terrapins leap off the building. The boy now named Joss stepped into the dim moonlight, the stars twinkling and reflecting in his gray eyes. His expression was that of parent who had just been told their child hates them. 

"I would never invade your mind, Donatello," he said to no one in particular. He patted his lower back area where the bulge of a short sword in its sheath was perfectly hidden beneath the bulge of his trench coat. "But does he honestly believe I would share these secrets and then not keep tabs on my apprentice? I have to make sure that they are not being used for poor ends."

He shuffled to the side of the building and looked down into the alley where a lone manhole rested peacefully near the end of the street. Suddenly, he snickered softly. "Yes, your right. I suppose I should give them some privacy. I've upset their family enough for one night. I don't need to visit them this soon."

The boy stepped back from the edge and crossed his arms. A bright light enveloped his body, which suddenly shatter into an array of glowing dust fragments that dissipated and disappeared into the night like millions of fireflies.

* * *

**A/N - **So how was that? (Grins maliciously) I hope I didn't scare too many people away with this chapter. And sorry if some Mikey fans think I'm leaving him out of things. Don't worry, he will get a bigger part later on. 


	6. Chapter 5 The Mistake

**A/N - **Wow, I am so sorry this took so long to come out, but my computer crashed and I had to rewrite the first three pages to this story and a method of typing it up. Thankfully, I think it came out better, but I still always hate rewriting portions of a fic. And this chapter turned out a little longer than I anticipated. Delays all around.

A little note, I have changed the genre of this story from its original of Supernatural/Drama to Fantasy/Suspense, the supernatural and fantasy things are technicalities, bu I do believe the suspense will suit this better. And there is a some action in this chapter which I hope you enjoy. I was probably boring you all with the tedious explanations in the last couple chapters. Enjoy.

**DISCLAIMER - **TMNT belongs to Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, Mirage Studios and 4Kids Entertainment.

* * *

**CHAPTER 5 - The Mistake**

Leo gently let the shell cell collapse in on itself with a soft click. He stared at it for several moments, his brow furrowed in a sense of nervous confusion, almost as if he expected it to spontaneously combust in his hands. He did not move from the window he had situated himself next to during the phone call, and the only reason Mike even saw Leo's face was because he somehow snuck up on him without Leo knowing.

"So what happened to the apology?" Mike asked rather suddenly, breaking the deafening silence of April's living room.

Leo jumped when his brother spoke to him, and he looked like he had just been caught in the middle of an extremely shameful act, with his eyes wide open and fearful and one hand over his chest trying to keep his heart contained. He frowned immediately when the words Mike had said finally registered to him. "I…couldn't," he said sincerely depressed at admitting that.

Mike frowned too. "Leo, what's gotten into you, dude? You've never just outright tackled one of us like that before. What's gotten you so on edge?"

Leo could not bear his brother's presence right then, so he walked away, not answering the question, and sat down on the couch, burying his face in his palms. April, who was sitting next to him, reached out a comforting arm to wrap around his muscular shell-covered shoulders. "It's alright Leo," she said soothingly. "I'm sure Don knows that you're sorry. I think Don, more than any of you, is the one who would forgive just about anything you guys did."

"But that's not the problem," Leo said. He dropped his hands away from his face and sighed. "I don't think I am sorry for it."

"What do you mean?" Mike asked sounding slightly scared.

"I mean…" Leo paused, trying to find the right way to put his thoughts. "I just get this feeling that Don's hiding something from us, something important, and I bet it involves that kid. And after what he just said, that only confirmed my suspicions."

"What did he say?" Mike asked taking several steps towards his brother.

Leo looked up to his youngest brother. Michelangelo had a serious look on his face that was disturbingly alien to him. The only times Leo had seen that look was when Mike was deeply focused on a video game he was playing, but then the look was almost comical as he stared at the screen with the utmost interest and devotion. Seeing him right now, there was nothing comical about it.

Leo looked back down at the floor. "He said that he had something he wanted to tell all of us. It sounded serious with the way he said it. I guess I'm scared of what he has to say."

"Oh, well Leo, you don't have to worry about that." Mike's tone had quickly changed to one of unsure comforting, the kind of comforting tone that was typical for him, so Leo had to smile at the familiarity. "You know Don. He probably had a suspicion of his own about the kid that he was not sure about. Maybe now he is sure. Did he mention he met him?"

"Yeah, yeah he did," Leo admitted. "He also said he found Raph and that they got away from him before a fight started."

"Well that's good," Mike sighed.

"But is it plausible?" Leo asked.

"How would that not be plausible Leo?" April asked. "Give Donnie some credit. You know he would avoid a fight if at all possible."

"Yeah, but Raph wouldn't," Leo argued standing up. He began to pace the open living room, agitation evident in his stride. "You did not meet this kid April. He was able to get under even _my_ skin. I can't see how Raph would be able to talk to him without losing his cool."

April crossed her arms in front of her and gave Leo a look that made him visibly shudder. "Leo," she said. "Just because Raph can be a bit of a hothead does not mean he is a complete idiot. You already told me what happened when you first met the kid, and it sounds like the kid made a big enough impression on Raph that even _he_ will be a bit wary before out right attacking him again. Besides, Raph does not attack someone for no reason."

Leo returned her glare with one of his own. "Don't try lecturing me on how far Raph will go with his anger. I've spent my whole life with him, and I've seen him do things in anger that would shock you. He almost killed Mikey with a lead pipe for Christ sake, and all they were doing was sparring."

"Why won't you let that go," Mike demanded from his position by the window. "That was over a year ago, and it was a one time deal, man. Besides, he was upset enough at himself for it. I forgave him, why can't you?"

"An' besides," a familiar gruff voice announced thickly laden with a New York accent. "If Raphie-Boy hadn't run off, ya guys woulda never met lovable ol' me." Casey was standing in the doorway to April's kitchen holding four mugs filled with steaming liquids of varying dark brown shades. "Here, I finished our drinks. Tea fer April and Leo, coffee fer me, and the Jones family's secret family Ultimate Chocolate Bomb Cocoa fer Mikey."

Mike practically leapt over to Casey and snatched a mug. He took a quick gulp and swiftly spat the nearly black liquid out the second it touched his lips. April flinched at the sight, but Leo was relatively sure it was more for the staining liquid that fell to her carpet rather than the splotches that now stained Casey's face. Leo could only smirk slightly to himself.

"Dude!" Mikey exclaimed as he desperately wiped his tongue with his hands. "That stuff tastes like dirt."

"That's cause ya grabbed my coffee, dimwit," Casey explained wiping his unamused face with a napkin he grabbed from the kitchen counter. "This is yers." Casey thrust a mug filled with a dark creamy liquid and topped with several tiny marshmallows into Mike's eager hands. He passed Leo and April their tea and turned back to the kitchen. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I gotta wipe my face of Mr. Sugar-high an' get myself another cup o' coffee."

"Actually Casey, can you wait on the other cup of coffee?" Leo asked.

"What, youse guys get ta drink yer things an' I don't?" Casey sounded rather indignant after that.

"No, no, it's just that Don wanted us back at the lair soon. He said he had something important he wanted to tell us, and that he wanted you guys to be there too," Leo explained. "And besides, knowing Donnie, he'll probably have a hot brew going by the time we get there."

"But…but my java," Casey pouted to Leo which earned him pained expressions from the other three occupants of the living room.

"Leo, just let him get another cup," April said. "We're so close to your place. Raph and Don are probably several blocks away, and besides, Don will want to get things set up for us and probably give Master Splinter a heads up in what's going on."

"So you want to give them a head start?" Leo translated for her.

"Pretty much, yeah," April nodded. "Besides, do you want to see that guy without his caffeine fix?" She made a quick gesture with her hand that motioned to her kitchen.

Leo stared down through the rising steam into the tranquil surface of his light apple-brown tea. A soft chuckle escaped his beak as he shook his head. "No, I suppose you're right. I guess we can give them…fifteen minutes to get ready."

Casey gave an audible cheer from the kitchen and came rushing out to plant a quick peck onto April's cheek. "Thanks babe," he said. "You must be the most persuasive person in the world if ya can talk Leo outta somethin'. Maybe ya shoulda gone inta politics instead o' this antique stuff."

"Hey yeah," Mikey agreed. "And I know you'd be really great at it too. Did I ever tell you you were mayor in that superhero world I visited?"

They all nodded with groans considering this was probably the fiftieth time Mike had mentioned that world and its superhero inhabitants. But this time, Casey gained a thoughtful expression. "Hey Mike, ya never did tell me where I was in that world," he pointed out.

Mike's face turned slightly sheepish. "Oh…I didn't…" Mike's face seemed to flush which made Leo raise an eyebrow in interest.

"Yeah, was I like, one a the guys that helped train wit' those super turtle dudes?" Casey offered. "Come on, what did I do there."

"Yeah Mike, what did he do there?" Leo helped goading his little bro.

Mike, apparent that he had been caught in a corner sighed in defeat. Raising one hand behind his head to scratch under his bandana tails he said quietly, "You were, um…Mayor O'Neil's non-violent secretary."

April sputtered on her drink and Leo patted her on the back to help her cough up the liquid. Casey just stared at Mikey with his mouth hanging open as if he was trying to coax a bird to fly out. Once April found her voice again, she pointed a shaky accusing finger at Casey and glared at Mike. "I had THAT as a secretary!? Its writing is barely legible let alone having it as a secretary."

Casey's mouth snapped shut and he turned to April, a serious look on his face. "Hey, I can write jus' fine, an' besides, we all know the first thing 'bout bein' a secretary is the coffee makin', and I got that down pat." The last bit was followed by a deep sip from his newly acquisitioned coffee mug and an over exaggerated sigh of satisfaction. Leo and Mike chuckled under their breath.

The small group of friends continued to joke for several minutes as they all casually sipped on their drinks at various rates of ingestion. Mike quickly guzzled his first, followed by Casey, and then April. Leo was a little more reluctant to drink, and instead spent much of the time distracted by the slight rippling his shaking hands made to the liquid inside the mug. His thoughts were clearly elsewhere, and by the time the allotted fifteen minutes he had ordered were up, he had barely finished half his drink.

"Come one Leo," April soothed rubbing his shell. "We need to meet up with everyone. You can leave the cup on the counter."

Leo nodded in acceptance and set down his mug on the kitchen counter. He gave the contents one last look, inspecting his waving reflection in the murky waters. _Why don't I trust Don right now,_ he thought to himself. _If I had to think about it, before now, he was the one person I could count on to handle a situation if I wasn't available. He was almost my unspoken second. What's wrong with me?_

Leo was awoken from his reverie by April's frantic chiding. "-your mug on the counter too, Mike. I don't want to have to go around this house every time you guys come over and pick up dirty dishes."

"Oh, right, sorry April." Mike dashed over to the mug he had left over on the windowsill and nabbed the small butterfly patterned ceramic cup. He held it above and in front of him and struck a strange victory pose. "Ha HA! I have defeated the tyrannical chocolate stain before we had any more casualties beyond miss butterfly cup," he announced in a bellowing voice. April put a hand over her mouth to stifle a chuckle and Casey rolled his eyes as he followed April to the basement and the tunnel out of her apartment that led to the pumping station.

But Leo's attention still seemed to be focused on Mikey, or at least that was what everyone else thought. What Leo's intense stare was actually focused on was the tiny glint he had noticed just over Mike's shoulder. It was not until the glint suddenly began growing as it approached the window at high velocity that Leo identified it and a look of horror spread across his face. "Leo, what's-" Mike began, but Leo did not give him the chance to finish.

A sickening hollow _thunk _echoed around the room as two shells collided with each other. Leo successfully tackled Mike to the floor the second a loud crash and clattering erupted from the shattered window pain and a low whistling followed the arrow as it embedded itself in the opposite wall.

Leo cautiously looked up and out the window, but he saw no sign of either their attacker or another arrow. He stood up and took a quick look down at Mike to make sure he was all right. April and Casey were in the living room doorway, each holding similar looks of shock and fear on their faces, but Leo ignored them for the moment and strode over to where the arrow was sticking out of the wall.

At first glance, it was clearly of Foot design. The fletchings were bright crimson and made of fine feathers. The shaft was black with small rings of similar crimson painted sporadically along the wood, and upon removal from the wall, the head was a flat piece of metal shaped amazingly similar to the Foot's clan insignia.

And there was, of course, the customary note written on parchment and tied to the charcoal black shaft. Leo crushed the arrow in his hands and removed the note from the splinters. Unraveling it, his face took on an appearance of horror and frustration as he took in every simple word written on the small sheet.

_Leonardo,_

_If you do not want to see your friend's home destroyed simply for being acquainted with you, then I suggest you and your brother Michelangelo meet me and my soldiers on the roof in five minutes._

_The Shredder_

Leo's face paled, but his teeth remained clenched tight. _How had they figured out we were here_, he wondered. _We were so careful to avoid any of her spies and we used the tunnel in April's basement to get here. They couldn't have known we were here._

"Leo, what is it?" Mikey pleaded as he grabbed for the message.

As the wrinkled paper left Leo's grasp a single name piped from his mouth. "Karai."

Mikey quickly read over the note and shot a horrified look to Leo that lasted only a moment before he turned the brunt of his attention on the two humans still waiting patiently for news in the doorway. For some reason, Mike could only see them as little children at that point that needed protecting as they huddled there together, Casey's arm gently draped over April's shoulder.

He turned back to Leo. "What do we do?" He asked.

Leo turned to the two humans and gave them a stern look. "Karai found out we were here and set up an ambush. She just wants Mike and I, so you two need to head to the lair and warn the others. Go out the back and run several blocks before entering the sewers. We don't need Karai learning we have a secret tunnel in your basement." Leo's orders were spoken with the ease and confidence he usually had, masking any signs that he was doubting himself just moments ago.

Casey and April did not move, but instead put on their own looks of stubbornness. "There is no way we are abandoning you guys to that maniac," April scolded. "We're staying to help, or you guys are coming with us."

Leo shook his head. "No April. The others need to be warned while Mike and I hold them off. We can't risk everyone's lives in this. Please guys, do this for us?"

His tone at the end was that of begging, something that April never questioned when she heard it from Leo. Grabbing a reluctant Casey Jones by the upper arm, she ran downstairs and soon disappeared leaving an echoing door slam in her wake.

The two brothers stood in silence for a moment before Mike shuffled over to Leo and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. He calmly stated in a voice that seemed so understanding, "Having them run around in the streets for awhile before getting down to the sewers and then navigating the tunnels means it will take them probably fifteen extra minutes before they reach the lair." Leo closed his eyes and hung his head, the pain and shame of what he had just done consuming his features. "You don't expect us to get out of this, do you?"

Leo hiccupped back a silent sob and whispered, "I'm sorry Mike."

The silent understanding from Mike was of little comfort to Leo at that time. He wanted Mikey to object, but he also knew that his brother would never question his orders, even suicidal ones like these.

After a few moments of silence passed between the brothers, Mike's hand fell from Leo's shoulder to pry his nunchaku from his belt. "Well come on bro. Let's go prove to Karai that if she wants to take down the two of us, then she's gonna need an army…with spaceships…and laser rifles…and…other stuff."

Leo could not help but crack a smile at his little brother's antics, and that simple smile seemed to release all the tension that was building inside of him. He unsheathed both his katanas from his back and twirled them expertly. "All right! Let's give Karai some shell."

* * *

Two minutes later, the brothers found themselves alone on the roof of April's antique shop/apartment. Their weapons were drawn and held in relaxed and ready positions. Eyeing around them, they could both easily detect the presence of several Foot ninja hiding behind various pieces of cover on the cluttered roof. The musky dirty air reeked of tar and grime, typical of the New York night. 

"All right Karai, we're here, now what do you want?" Leo demanded as if he did not already know the answer.

The familiar silhouette of the shredder's armor appeared from behind a cooling unit and stared at the pair for a long while, those shadowed eyes glowing ominously in the dim night haze of the city. The eyes shifted slightly and Leo could have sworn she was smiling at him. "I thought that would be obvious by now Leonardo," she explained. "I am here to avenge my father by taking from you your lives."

"Well you'd better be careful Karai," Mikey piped up. "We got some wicked new mystic powers from the tribunal, so we're way stronger than the last time you fought us."

Leo glared back at his brother. "Mikey!" he whispered urgently. Taunting Karai was not going to help them.

And sure enough, Karai merely gave them a stupefied look. "Do you honestly take me for that big of a fool. I know full well that you only had those powers because of the amulets the tribunal gave you, and now that they are broken, you can no longer harness them."

Leo sighed in exasperation. So much for Mikey's plan. "How did you find us?" Leo questioned her.

"You know of my lookouts in front of your friend's house. Apparently they spotted you through the window." Leo felt a block of ice fall into his stomach as those horrific words came to him. "My men contacted me and soon discovered that it was only you two inside. We spent several minutes setting up this ambush for you, which I am sure you have already noticed. I must say that I am impressed that you were able to sneak in past my guards detection, but you spent too long in there, so I decided to goad you out with a mild threat that I knew you could never ignore. You always were rather gullible Leonardo."

Leo could feel his body shaking as Karai's words sunk in. It was that window. He had wandered over to the window while he was on the phone with Don. He completely forgot about the men outside and actually showed himself to them. He had caused his and Mikey's downfall. He could not believe himself.

Karai saw that Leo was distracted and took this time to initiate her attack. "Foot ninja, kill them!" She screamed through the steel mask of her helmet. A torrent of heavily armed men dressed in the typical black uniform of the foot spilled out of every nook and cranny, every crevice, every single place that could be used as a conceivable hiding spot.

Leonardo's self-loathing did not last for long. The second an enemy swung down at him with a ninjato, he reacted as only his years of training allowed him to. He quickly sidestepped and knocked the ninja out with the hilt of his blade and prepared himself for the onslaught.

An endless supply of Foot soldiers continued to bombard the pair. As he continued to fend off the assailants, Leo focused his attention on the whirling of wood and chains through the air and how they would stop briefly to let loose a sickening crack as they connected and broke solid bone. As long as those noises continued, he knew that his brother was all right.

As the battle continued to drag on, Leonardo began to feel a little less merciful as fatigue began to set in. He could no longer focus his attention on dealing crippling and debilitating blows instead of lethal ones. Two ninjas fell in front of him in a spray of blood as his own ninjato danced through their necks, leaving two heads to roll to the feet of the next victims.

As the bodies fell, Leo suddenly noticed black shadows in his vision that were coming towards him. He quickly bent down, avoiding the majority of the shuriken, and deflected away the remaining projectiles with his blade.

Suddenly, a scream erupted that was all too familiar to him. It was a high-pitched wail of pain as Mikey succumbed to an attack. He leapt to his feet and cut through three men before he found his brother. Four other ninja were advancing on him as he knelt on the ground cradling his right arm that was riddled with three shuriken.

After a quick foray with Mike's stalkers that ended with the brothers being surrounded by a crimson and black moat, Leo looked down to address Mikey's wounds.

It was worse than he had thought. Shuriken were sticking out all over his right side as if he were a star pincushion. Two more were stuck in his upper leg as well as one stuck just above the breast of his plastron and the razor point of a fourth one protruded from the narrow gap between his carapaces. Sweat was beading on his forehead as he did his best to endure the pain he must have been in.

A soft metallic chuckle came from behind them, and Leo turned to see the other ninjas backing off, leaving room for Karai to approach. Leo glared at here but focused on the pained breaths his brother was taking that seemed to be gradually becoming deeper and calmer. It seemed like Mike was actually using a meditation technique. Go figure.

"My men just informed me that your two human friends were seen running as far away from this place as they possibly could," Karai sneered. "They certainly seem like honorable people now, don't they."

Leo's glare deepened at her. She was obviously trying to rile him, but he would not give her the satisfaction. "Sorry to disappoint you Karai, but I told them to run," Leo explained. "I was not about to let them sacrifice themselves over some petty act of revenge someone wants on _our_ heads."

"How typical of you Leonardo," Karai mocked. "You do the honorable thing of protecting those pitiful people you call friends while sending your own family to their deaths. How does poor little Michelangelo feel about you taking more care in protecting humans instead of him?"

Leo growled at her as her words stung him, but before he could retort, Michelangelo piped up from behind him. "If Leo hadn't sent them away, then I would have, and at least he's protecting our brothers." Then, so softly that Leo almost missed it, Mike said, "Keep her talking Leo. I need some time."

Leo's face took on a confused expression, but he quickly brought his focus back to Karai as she began chuckling again, a noise that echoed within her helmet, sending a chill down his shell. "So he finds you expendable, but your brothers get to live. How quaint Leonardo, how quaint."

Leo shook his head. "You're wrong Karai. I know my brothers and I know that any of them would willingly die to protect the others, and so would I." Leo closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he flicked them open again and pierced Karai with the most confident menacing glare he could muster. "If you think you can get me to hate myself for my actions think again Karai."

The eyes in the mask bulged slightly but quickly returned to their evil slits. "It seems you learned you are _not_ fate's gift to the world, Leonardo. I guess your stay with the tribunal was not for naught and they did not just throw you to the dirt the second they had no more need of you."

Leo shook his head rather suddenly and smirked. "Sorry Karai, but your mind games won't do you much good here," he said forcefully. "I know what I am capable of, and I have no regrets in life that I have not overcome already. If you think you are so confident than come and face me."

"Gladly!" Karai jumped at the challenge and lunged at Leo. Leo deflected her attack and rolled out of the way. He was tired. Too tired to take on Karai. He knew that he could never handle her in this condition and protect Mikey at the same time. And he knew that she knew that too.

"What is the matter, Leonardo, giving up?" Karai taunted.

Leo shot a quick glance to Mikey. His eyes were closed and his head was hung. He no longer cradled his injured arm. Instead his hands were resting on his legs as he sat in the lotus position, his breathing calm and controlled.

Leo would have been more exasperated at Mike's timing of taking up meditation had he not noticed his brother's bandana tails floating in the breezeless air. Leo squinted and saw small pebbles surrounding Mike rising from the roof to float several inches off the surface.

"And now you die," Karai screamed as she lunged one more time. Leo raised his weary arm in an effort to block the incoming blade, but the attack was interrupted by a sudden flaming orange glow that enveloped the battlefield.

"Got it!" The scream was followed by a loud crack and Karai was sent flying backwards into the awaiting arms of several obedient Foot soldiers. Leo looked up to see standing before him, Mikey with those clear mystic orange markings adorning his body. Those crescent moons that were scattered across his skin flickered with eerie luminescence as he stood above Leo, a single nunchaku dangling from his good left hand still swaying slightly from the last attack it had been used for. "I told you we had sweet mystic powers."

Leo stared up at his brother in awe unsure of what to say as he eyed the curves in the intricate pattern that splayed across his brother's body. Mike turned and winked at him. "I'll take it from here, Leo," he said slyly, and suddenly a great blur of orange and blue-green was moving at rapid speeds across the roof.

Foot soldiers were suddenly sent flying through the air as if they were bowling pins hit in a perfect strike. Weapons were heard snapping like twigs and a continuous chorus of woody collisions bounced across the beaten bodies strewn about.

It was over in less than a minute. The mystic energies that enhanced Mike's agility and strength to beyond comprehension had allowed him to wipe out an entire army of Foot soldiers and while only using one side of his body. He now stood next to Leo's dumbstruck form, beads of sweat creating a reflective sheen over his whole body. Leo eyed him carefully, and although he was trying to hide it, it was evident that Mike was more than a little winded.

"Impossible," Karai announced from her position on the ground, cradling a broken wrist. "You should not be able to use those powers. You do not have the amulets."

Mikey gave her one of his patented sly smirks. "Sorry to disappoint you, but we figured out how to get these powers without the amulets."

Karai glared at him for a moment before she blanched and looked away. "Foot ninja, retreat," she declared before dropping a smoke bomb before her. Several of the other ninjas dropped their own and disappeared as well. When the smoke had cleared, all the unconscious and deceased bodies had been cleared away, leaving pools of blood and cracked cement and heating units, and two very tired turtles on the roof.

Mike suddenly slumped to his knees, his breath quickening but clear that it still held a good deal of control in it. The aura did not fade as it usually did when one of them dropped their focus, so either something else was going on, or Mike was trying desperately to maintain his concentration. That would certainly explain the steady breathing.

A sudden flutter in the glowing runes confirmed that he wanted to maintain the advanced state for a while longer. Leo did not think that was such a good idea since Mike's body had already taken a great deal of abuse, and he did not need to stretch it. He rushed over and placed a comforting hand on his brother's back. "Hey Mike, relax now, okay? It's over," he pleaded.

Mike fervently shook his head but looked up to give Leo a dopey grin. "Didn't think I could back up my claims, didja?" he asked lightheartedly, masking the fatigue that was written all over his trembling body.

Leo shook his head and laughed. "No, I didn't," he admitted. "I still can't believe that you pulled this off. How did you?"

"Practice, believe it or not," Mike said as he tried to bring himself to his feet. "We were like superheroes when we first learned to use those powers. There was no way that I was just going to let that slip by. The Ninja Tribunal always said that the amulets 'enhanced' our inner strength, so I thought that meant I still had it in me somewhere."

Leo shook his head in disbelief. "So you've been spending time training to bring out these powers again?"

"Yep, a sort of 'secret training' I made up," Mike explained cheerfully. He began the painful process of extricating the seven shuriken lodged within his flesh, wincing every time he pried the sharp pieces of metal from himself.

Leo grabbed him by the wrist and gave him a stern glare. "You'll just do more damage if you pull those out. Let Don treat those when we get back."

Mike raised one eye ridge at this. "You don't expect me ta run home with them in me, do you?"

Leo's eyes bulged for a second before his palm connected with his head as he sighed. "No Mike, I expect you to wait here for the others to arrive with the battle shell, and then we can ride home." Leo looked up at his younger brother. "Trust me, _I_ don't even want to run-."

He stopped mid sentence when he noticed the playful scheming look his brother had on his face. It was broken for only a second as he winced once more as the last bloody star was removed and let fall to the tar and gravel covered roof. With that done, he wiped his hands in front of him and gave Leo a strangely confident look. "No Leo, I plan on going home the fun way."

Leo did not like the tone his brother used, and it was at this point that he decided to take note that his brother still adorned the mystic marks. "Mikey…what are you saying?" He asked cautiously.

Mike folded his arms across his chest. "I'm saying that we don't want to keep everyone waiting, making them worried sick about us, so I suggest we go the fast and fun way." And suddenly, before Leo could even blink in response to his brother's bizarre answer, he found himself hoisted in the air and flung over Mike's good left side with seemingly no effort at all. "Hold on!" Mike screamed.

"To what?" Leo yelled back as he patted down his brother's carapace.

Mikey cocked his head in confusion before chuckling in slight embarrassment. "Oh, right. Well I guess I'll hold on, and you can just sit tight…or lie tight…or whatever you want to call that position…anyway, here we go!" With a sudden gust of wind, Leo and Mikey were flying across rooftops and down through sewer tunnels at speeds beyond even that of jet planes.

Sound barrier? Mach three? Those were long since passed.


	7. Chapter 6 The Truth

**A/N - **GAAH! I am SO sorry this chapter took so long to get up. I had this problem going on with this thing called "life" that was getting in the way of my doing any sort of writing. Also, this was, towards the end, one of the harder chapters to write, and even now I think I rushed through things in the end. Well, tell me what you think and please review nicely and give criticism whenever you think of it.

**DISCLAIMER - **TMNT belongs to Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird, Mirage Comics and 4Kids Entertainment.

* * *

**CHAPTER 6 - The Truth**

Master Splinter gently let the fragile porcelain cup rest on its decorative accompanying saucer, as Donatello finished recapping his version of events so far for his father. The remaining tea was more or less a tiny wading pool for the soggy brown leaf flakes that stained the white china. They swam and danced around slightly from the gentle jostling accompanying the grounding of their vessel.

Splinter's eyes remained closed for several moments after silence had fallen between the three that now occupied the lair. Raphael was impatiently twirling one sai between the fingers of his left hand, while Donatello sat across from his father and watched him, the nervous bulges in his throat and stomach never once softening his anxiety of the current circumstances.

Donatello had explained the physical details of their first encounter with Joss, nothing spectacular and no stretching of truths. He refrained from mentioning his association with the boy during the encounter, something that he was now certain his master had picked up on.

He had done what his father had asked and had been the first to tell his side of the story, although he was not sure he wanted Splinter to hear a recount from his other brothers. Right now, the only person in his family that was not mind bogglingly confused about the situation was Raphael, and even he did not have the full story. Don decided that it would be better for them all if he came out and told them everything before any more accusatory words were thrown about each other.

"My son," Splinter began, finally ending the deafening silence. "Why do you not tell me everything?"

Don silently cursed his father for being so intuitive despite the number of close calls that intuition saved them from. It always seemed to be sharpest when one of them wanted to keep a secret.

He held his head downward, not wanting to look his father in the eyes at that particular moment. "Father," he started. "Please, just trust me when I say that I have good reason for not explaining everything right now. I want you all to know what is going on, so I will explain when Leo and Mike get back."

Splinter opened his eyes and scrutinized his second youngest son. "Donatello, you know I trust your judgment in most circumstances, but right now, with your brothers and I as confused as we are, I do not believe that withholding information from us any longer is such a wise idea."

Don nodded in agreement. "I agree with that sensei, and I have every intention of telling you everything, but I want Leo and Mike here. They were the most confused and upset on that roof."

"All the more reason to tell me first," Splinter argued. He stood and took several steps away from either son, displaying the brown fabric of the back of his kimono as he seemed to watch the grain of the walls. "As much as I hate to think like this, I think your brothers may act rashly to anything you tell them right now, especially Leonardo. Whatever secrets you have kept have created an unfortunate wedge in our family, and, as our clan leader, and your father, it is my duty to make sure that wedge is not driven further. And so, I feel it is necessary that you inform me of the details so that I can contemplate how your brothers will react."

Don stared at his father's back, obviously a position he claimed so that Don could not read any of the emotion he must be desperately trying to hold back at this moment. "Sensei, I know how my brothers will react," he explained with as much conviction in his voice as he could portray. "I know that Mikey and Leo are confused, but they will trust me and change their minds when they hear what I have to say."

Their was a deep sigh from Splinter and a gentle swaying of his head as he reluctantly admitted to his two present sons, "I am not so certain they will."

Don could not say anything. He could only stare at his father's back, sadly as he contemplated what to say about that. He had not lied or embellished anything when he said he was confident about Leo and Mikey accepting things, but what he failed to mention was how uncertain he was of Splinter accepting what he had done. In truth, Splinter was the one variable in this that Don could not figure out.

Still, he wanted desperately to say something, anything that would relieve his father of the concern that was torturing him at that moment. It was clear how much anxiety he was feeling and there had to be some way for Don to help him, but at that moment, all ideas of comforting his sensei were lost to him.

Fortunately, Raphael had seen the concern too and had come up with just the thing to take their father's mind off of it. "Hey Don," he finally said after the long silence. Don's head snapped to Raph who was still leaning against a metal support pipe in their living area, although he had stopped spinning the sai and was now carefully inspecting the tip of the center prong. He stated the next words with a rare calm that was only heard from Raphael when he was trying to help comfort one of his brothers at an extremely stressful time for them. "Why don't ya show Master Splinter yer arm?"

Don's eyes brightened in understanding as he realized just how perfect that suggestion was. He began to undo the bandages that were wrapped around his shoulder, a relieved smile now crossing his face.

Splinter, however, had turned to give Raphael a confused glance, which Raph promptly responded to with a pointed nod to Donatello. Splinter looked over to his bo wielding son and noticed the actions he was taking. "My son," he stated urgently as he rushed forward. "You mustn't remove the bandages for another…" His voice trailed off as he watched Don pull his hand away with the final bunches of gauze locked tightly in his fist.

After a quick swipe with the dry parts of the bandage to clear away the remaining stains of dried blood from his skin, Don turned slightly so that the full view of his shoulder was revealed to his sensei for critical inspection. There were no wounds anywhere on his arm. Splinter stepped forward and took his son's muscled bicep in his gnarled paw like hand, lifting it and twisting it gently so that the light hit the skin more clearly.

The arm was fine. The only evidence of their ever being a wound in the first place was a small clustering of nearly invisible pale green scars that meshed around his shoulder.

"Donatello…What…?" His father stammered, as his wide eyes desperately tried to comprehend the miraculously quick healing his son had undergone.

Don pulled his arm away from his father and looked at him confidently. "I can explain this, but Leo and Mike deserve to know as well, and the longer I wait to tell them, the more they will distrust me."

Splinter took a step back and glanced from Don's confident eyes to the now fully healed shoulder. "So this is related to the encounter you had with that boy?"

Don nodded.

Splinter sighed, rubbing his hand over his muzzle and down that tuft of fur that fell from his chin like a beard. He closed his eyes in quick mediation as he pondered what his son was telling him and suggesting. "Alright," he finally agreed. "When your brothers finally arrive home, you will tell us all what it is that you know about this boy and what his relationship with you is."

Don smiled and bowed from his sitting position to his sensei. "Thank you for trusting me father."

Splinter waved off the show of respect. "Bah! Do not thank me yet. I am still uncertain that your judgment was wise," he admitted.

Don continued smiling, but he cast his eyes downward as he stood. "I have…wondered that for a long time myself sensei."

Splinter regarded him for a few moments as he contemplated how to respond to that. Unfortunately, he was never given the opportunity to respond as they were suddenly interrupted by the sound of the main entrance door slamming open and two figures came rushing in. One had matted and greasy black hair that fell to his shoulders, and the other had beautiful red hair that was neatly tied in a bun save for two locks that fell in front of her ears.

Casey and April rushed in, eyes wide and frantic with fear and worry. They were both breathing heavily, so it was obvious that they had been running for quite some time. "Guys…Foot…roof…Leo and Mikey…go….help," Casey began to stammer desperately.

A Friendly, yet not-so-gentle smack to the back of the head from Raphael shut Casey up. "Yo, either speak or breathe numbskull. We can't understand ya when you do both at the same time."

Casey just rubbed his head and looked at Raph somewhat bewildered. Thankfully, April had taken the time to catch her breath, and was now recounting to the room what Casey was trying to iterate. "Foot ninja attacked my building. Leo and Mikey went to face them. That was over twenty minutes ago. You guys need to help them."

A dissonant chord of three gasps rang out through the lair as the three mutants all took in the shock of what they had said. "But…Can they hold out that long?" Don stated nervously.

Raph shook his head with a passion. "Don' say that bro. Ya know they will. They'll hold out as long as they haff ta."

"Agreed," Master Splinter put in urgently. "But we must hurry. The sooner we arrive to help them, the less worried a father I'll be."

"R-Right," Don stammered. And then, gaining a new conviction, he pulled out a device from his gadget bag he left on a coffee table. "The battle may have gone over several buildings, so I'll track them through their shell cells." He fiddled with the device for a few seconds, mumbling as he worked. "I'll set the frequency for Leo and Mike's cells and then I'll display it on a map, and now we…can…" Don's voice trailed off as he stared in surprise at the map he had brought up.

"What is it?" Raph asked impatiently. "Can't ya find 'em?"

"No, I found them," Don said urgently. "It's just…they're heading home…and…they're fast."

Splinter raised an eyebrow at him. "What do you mean?"

"I mean they just past Aprils place ten seconds ago, and they're already in central park and are going to arrive…now."

A sudden bang echoed as the main entrance door was thrown open once again, but this time it allowed through it a massive breeze that billowed and snatched at the clothes and bandannas everyone was wearing. Everyone shielded their eyes from the painful sting of the onslaught of air.

And then, just as quickly as it had come, the torrent died away and was replaced by Michelangelo, glowing orange with those mystic tattoos covering his body and a slightly unnerved and indignant Leonardo slung haphazardly over his shoulder.

"Mikey! Land! Now! Please!" Leo ordered, although the last word seemed to be thrown out more as an afterthought to appease his baby brother.

"Heh, right bro," Mike said as he effortlessly set Leo down on his butt with one hand. Leo seemed not to mind that he was not on his feet. In fact, he seemed to prefer the more bodily contact with the ground, as if he were assuring himself that it was not going to disappear from him again.

Mikey took the time to looks up and carefully scrutinize the bewildered stares he was receiving from the five other members of his family. "Uh, guys, I know it's hard to look away from the awe I inspire as the Battle Nexus Champion, but seriously, Yer startin' to creep me out here."

There was a series of stammering from everyone that mostly consisted of the question, "How?" being echoed by everyone, including Leo. Mikey just chuckled to himself. He loved seeing his family shocked like this, especially when Splinter and Donnie were at a loss for an explanation.

"Guys, calm down, I can explain everything," Mikey said, and the room quickly died away. "The answer is really simple." He swayed slightly, and his eyes fluttered for a second. "But first." He raised one of his thick fingers in emphasis. "I think I _really_ need a nap." And with that, the glow of the mystic marks faded and vanished, and Mike crashed forward unconscious.

Everyone rushed to his side immediately, Donatello and Splinter taking their places as the healers on either side of his still form. "Leonardo, what happened," Splinter urged from his leader of a son.

"The foot attacked us," Leo explained. "Things were looking bad. I was…I was trying to make a deal to get Mikey out of there, but then Mikey brought up those mystic strengths and struck back. He brought down an entire army of foot soldiers, the foot elite, and Karai in a manner of seconds and with one hand." His words were spoken in awe, but there was a slight twinge in his voice that was slightly unfamiliar that Splinter, Raphael and Donatello all caught, although they could not figure out what it was.

"How the hell'd he manage that?" Raph wondered allowed for everyone.

Leo just shook his head in response. "I have no idea, but I'm glad he did. Don, is he going to be okay?"

Michelangelo answered for Donatello when he made a loud buzzing snore that echoed through the pumping station. Casey failed at suppressing a giggle, and was quickly rewarded with a sharp nudge to the gut by April. Don smiled and said, "Yeah, he should be fine. It looks like he's just exhausted."

Leo nodded. But then he remembered something and bent down next to Don. "Hey, Mike took several Shuriken earlier. Can you patch those up?"

Don looked at Leo for a second and then turned Mikey over on his shell to get a closer look, and sure enough, there were the several bleeding cuts still oozing the red life-blood from him. Don sighed exasperated. "Why did he pull them out himself?"

Leo stood up and turned to the bathroom. "I'll go get the med kit," he announced.

"No, wait," Don stopped him. Leo turned to him looking slightly baffled and just on the edge of going ballistic again, but he was still careful to keep it in check. Don would have to thank him for that later. "Don't worry. I don't need the med kit, not anymore, at least." He raised his head and gave his father a meaningful look. Splinter looked back at him, studying his son's face as the silent communication passed between them. Splinter answered with a curt nod and he shuffled back a few feet and took up a lotus position to watch.

Don turned his attention back to Michelangelo and set to work. Using his left hand, he pinched the opening in his chest plate closed so that it only revealed itself as a slightly bubbling red line amongst the drying blood. He then pressed one finger of his right hand at the base of the wound and gradually began to slide it up along the length of the cut. As he did so, his finger let out a bright orange-red glow, and a faint crackling could be heard emanating from between the finger and plastron.

Everyone watched in shock and awe as the wound seemed to vanish after his finger had left the area. Don moved on to the next cut, and then the next, and then the next, all the while, his family was watching him, enraptured by the fact that he was healing his brother merely by touching him.

After a cool five minutes. Don had the last of the seven shuriken wounds sealed, and Mikey was sleeping contentedly, the small sleeping smile he wore affirmed that he was in a pleasantly peaceful dream. Don sat back, wiping away the sweat that had formed on his brow with a bloody hand. "Okay, now we just need to wash him up a bit," he said aloud.

Leo needed no more motivation. He was off and cantering to the linen closet to go and fetch some clean rags and paper towels. After wetting some down in the bathroom, he returned and took over care of Mike as he washed off the latent blood that had pooled around him. "Let's get him to the couch," Leo suggested as he finished wiping the blood off his baby brother.

Raph helped Leo carry him to the couch and everyone followed. Once they had him situated under a warm blanket with a soft down pillow under his head, everyone stood back to relax for a little bit, and eyed both Leo and Don the whole while.

"Well," Casey began, trying desperately to fill the uncomfortable silence. "That was a trip, wasn't it?"

There were a series of groans from everyone, but Casey indignantly held his ground. "Hey, it was, and now we got a couple o' neat stories ta look forward to, right?"

"Yes, Mr. Jones, we certainly do," Splinter agreed as he looked from Leo to Don once more. "However, they will both have to wait until Michelangelo has awoken, for he deserves to hear and tell both stories." And that meant that the subject was closed for the time being.

* * *

They didn't have to wait long. Michelangelo was notorious for never staying down long, whether it be from sedative, or knock out, and with Don's added healing affects, Mike was up and awake in less than an hour. He perked his eyes open to look over at an off TV screen and his brother Leo meditating in front of them. He could hear everyone else in the lair, Raph at the punching bag, Don with April tapping away at his computer, Master Splinter in the kitchen making tea, and Casey just over his shoulder, sitting in the arm chair, munching on the last of their potato chips. "Aw man, I was saving those," Mike cried indignantly.

"Whoa," Casey exclaimed as he fell off the arm rest portion he was using for an actual seat. "Yer awake. Hey guys, Mike's awake!"

"Yeah, and yer eatin' my potato chips," he announced. "I was saving those for when they blossomed into the stale rubbery goodness from my special vinegar coating."

Casey glanced down at the bag in his hand, his cheek bulging outward from being stuffed with potato chips. "So tha's why they tasted sour."

A thunderous symphony of foot steps, mostly April's considering everyone else kept their steps quiet from second nature ninja-ing, surrounded the small couch as everyone quickly gathered around the now wide awake Michelangelo. Don was kneeling down at the side and staring intensely into his brother's eyes. "How are you feeling?" he asked.

Mikey shifted uncomfortably. He was always one who begged for attention and always had to be in the center stage, but this sort of attention was not to his liking. "I'm fine," he insisted, and it was true enough. Aside from the usual grogginess from having just woken up from deep unconsciousness, he was feeling pretty good, better than that even. His right side no longer burned and stung him. Don must have taken great care of him while he was out. "Thanks for stitchin' me up, bro. Now just give me the bad news of how long I'll have to be in bed." Mike smiled warmly at Don as he sat up from his prone position, forcing many of the onlookers to step back and give him some space.

Don was the only one who did not move. "In my professional opinion Mike," Don said in a strange monotone. "You are perfectly healthy and can do anything you normally do."

Mike looked genuinely baffled, but then something seemed to dawn on him and he just scowled slightly. "Dude, don't get my hopes up like that," he growled. "Listen, I know you and your medical jargon, and you usually say stuff like, 'Stay off that leg,' or, 'Don't use that arm until it's fully healed.' And after these shuriken wounds, I know your not…gonna…" Mike lost his voice the second he looked down at the arm he was gesturing too. It looked fine. There were no bandages on it, or stitches where he had been hit. In fact, there was not even a mark where he had been hit.

He quickly glanced down at his leg and saw the exact same conditions, or rather the lack of any sort of condition. He felt his chest and found no cracks in his plastron. He even fumbled around his side, sure he would find a gaping hole there that he could stick his fingers into, but all he brushed against was rough scaly skin.

His eyes slowly raised themselves to look into that calm gaze his brainy brother had kept on him. He opened his mouth several times to say something, but closed it each time as the words he wanted to say escaped him.

"Nice fish impersonation Mikey," Raph snorted. The comment earned him a silent chuckle from April, a loud guffaw from Casey, and an indignant glare from Mike. Raph considered all those reactions sufficient recompense for the hard rapping he received on his head from Splinter's cane. After a quick scold from his father, Raph went back to watching Mike and Don, rubbing his head and smiling ruefully.

"Now that everyone is here, I believe there is something that needs to be explained to everyone, wouldn't you agree Donatello?" Splinter announced to the room.

Don nodded and gestured for everyone to take their seats. Casey and April took spots on the couch together with Mike, Casey swinging his arm over Mike to drag him into a headlock hug. Raph decided to stay standing and leaned against one of the many pillars. Splinter took his favorite recliner, sitting lotus position on the high cushion.

Leo was the most reluctant to move. He seemed perfectly fine with maintaining his position as a silent and stiff gargoyle hovering behind Mikey and the couch. He eventually relaxed and took up his meditative post by the TVs again, giving Don a somewhat cold stare of interest.

Mike looked around at everyone from his position under Casey's reeking armpit. Everyone had on a serious face and seemed to be waiting for Don to say something, and having no clue what was going on, Mike started to feel a bit annoyed about his position, both physically and socially. "Okay, One," Mike announced struggling under Casey's steel cord bicep. "I actually took a shower today, and I don't want to need another one so soon, so let me out of here." He finally shook the arm off his head, receiving a chuckle and quick apology from Casey. "And two, what the shell is going on? Why is everyone so serious all of a sudden?"

"Mikey," Leo spoke, and all eyes suddenly turned to him. It was the first word he had said since he got back. "Apparently, somehow, Donatello was able to heal your wounds just by touching you." Mike stared slack jawed at his leader brother. "And the reason he can do that is apparently related to a certain teenager we met only a few hours ago."

When Leo finished detailing the small preamble Don had given everyone else earlier, Don decided to take that moment to get everyone's attention before more of Mikey's questions suddenly popped up. He made a coughing noise as he cleared his throat and all the expectant eyes turned to him. He looked down at his hands resting on his thighs as he sat lotus style on the floor in front of everyone, thinking through what he was going to say. "This story will be…detailed to say the least, and so it is sort of difficult to know where to begin," he said.

He raised his head and noticed a series of candles lit on the central coffee table. "I guess that is as good a start as any," he announced, pointing to the candles. "Keep an eye on the flame," he instructed as everyone's gaze focused on the candles. He flicked his hand so that his palm was facing up and only his index finger pointed towards the flickering light. Raising his finger, he twitched his hand and the flame from one of the candles rocketed up and into the air several feet until Don's extended finger paused and focused on the flame. Sparks began to fly from the nearly still fire and spiral around and down below the flame in an intricate pattern of orange and red flakes. Then Don opened his whole hand. The response from the flame was to flare into a small fireball, less than a foot wide, and then dissipate into nothing.

Don dropped his hand and looked at the stunned looks on everyone's faces. "This is called pyromancy," he explained simply. "It is the manipulations of fire and biological energies that it controls. I am also skilled in hyrdromancy which controls water and heat energy manipulation. Both of these are skills I learned from that boy, Joss, as Raphael called him." Several people gave Raph questioning looks which the hotheaded turtle answered with a shrug. "I've been studying these two forms of magic from him for several years now."

"Years!?" came a stunned cry from his father.

Don flinched slightly. "Yes, years. The past seven years to be exact. He has taught me how to control them, because, apparently, he saw potential and need in me to harness these skills. I think he saw what kind of life we were living and decided to help, in a way."

"When have you been doing this training," Splinter asked.

"At night," Don admitted. "He gave me this." Don removed his bandanna to reveal a thin golden circlet wrapped around his head that was hidden beneath the mask. "Whenever I wear it, it helps to keep my mental and physical exhaustion in check, as well as increasing the recuperative properties of REM by three times the norm." He sighed the second he saw the confused looks he was getting from everyone, save April who had palmed her face at the confused looks as well. Don translated, "I need less sleep."

"And so you all wouldn't notice my absence, I left an eidolon in my bed to make it look like I was sleeping," he continued.

"So…What's an eidolon?" Casey asked the question that was on everyone's mind right then.

"This," Don said as he gave a sharp whistle. From the upstairs balcony, and striding from Don's room, came another Don. It did a quick and agile running flip as it landed silently and effortlessly next to the source of its visage. It stood straight and unmoving, its face an expressionless empty mask that stared blankly at the rest of the room. "This is an eidolon. It's a repository made from magically infused clay to represent the person who created it. It can perform simple instructions, or I can meditate and use it as a repository for my soul, making it perform complex actions and absorb senses as if it were me."

"So you can actually walk around as if you were in it?" Mike asked trying to piece together what he was being told.

Don nodded. "Precisely."

Splinter shook his head. "So you go through all this trouble to hide this from us. Why? Did you think we would disapprove?"

Don shook his head too. "No, not so much disapprove. Joss wanted me to only use these skills if absolutely necessary, and so I thought it would be easier if I did not mention them in case we all began relying on them too much. As it is, I think I relied on them too much anyway."

"That is sensible my son," Splinter asked. "And I find your reasoning acceptable, but when was it that you used these powers?"

"All the time," Don explained. He then thought for a few seconds, before looking back at everyone. "Does anyone remember the last time any of us was seriously injured?"

There was a sudden silence as everyone pondered that question. To say they did not expect it was a bit of an understatement. They seemed genuinely taken aback, first at the question, and then at how difficult they found it to give him a legitimate answer. Surprisingly, it was Casey who broke the silence. "Yous guys never got hurt b'fore. You guys 'er all, like, mad skill warriors so ya know how to keep yerselves from getting' really badly hurt, right?"

"Mr. Jones," Splinter said calmly. "It is true that my sons and I know how to handle being hit so that we can make the injury that may result less severe, however, we are none of us invincible. We are mortal and can be killed. Please tell me you realize this."

Casey flushed from embarrassment and hung his head, not saying anything.

"Hey, there was that time I was first trying to ride a skateboard," Mikey suggested. Everyone looked at him then. "I fell off and hit my head. Got a concussion or something, right? You guys actually thought I might not make it."

There was a soft crackling sound as Splinter's grip on his walking stick tightened at the reminder of one of the worst memories of his life. Things went just as Michelangelo had said, except that Splinter had actually resigned himself to losing his playful son then.

"Mikey, that was seven years ago," Leo put in. "And we were all nine then. There must have been something since then, like a broken bone, maybe?"

But Don shook his head in response to Leo's reasoning. "No, as far as you guys should remember, that WAS the last time any of us was seriously injured," he explained. "I know, because it was the exact reason that I went searching for Joss so I could ask him to heal Michelangelo."

The room got quiet all of a sudden. Mikey was the first to try and piece things together. "So, because I got hurt, you ran off and that guy found you, and then he taught you magic?"

But before Don could confirm or deny anything, Splinter interrupted with his own account of what happened. "No, Michelangelo, Donatello said he went searching for the young man. In other words, he had already known the boy, isn't that right, my son?"

Don nodded slowly, confirming his father's suspicions. "I had met him before. I actually remembered him from a few years before then." He looked at everyone, taking in the attentive eyes that were waiting for the final pieces. "Do you all remember…when I got lost in the sewers?"

"Ya mean when we we'e six?" Raph said. "Are ya sayin' tha's when ya first met tha kid?"

Don nodded once more. "The thing is though, I never really got lost in those sewers," he admitted. There was a beat of silence as Don steeled himself just before he let out one of the biggest secrets he had kept from his family. "I didn't just get lost looking for spare junk to play with. I ran away."


End file.
